r^^x.^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


II! 


i.O 


I.I 


i^  iU    Iilii2.2 

us 


■  4.0 


2.0 


■Uui. 

L25  11.4    11.6 


olographic 
Sciences 
Corporation 


23  W«ST  NiMH  STRPIT 

WIBSTIR,N.Y.  MStO 

(71«)  •72-4505 


'# 


CIHM/ICMH 

MicrofSche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historicai  Microreproductions  /  institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technicul  and  Bibliogiaphic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliogrdphiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographicaiiy  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


D 


D 


D 


D 
D 


n 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommag^e 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurte  et/ou  peilicuMe 


I      I   Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


I      I   Coloured  maps/ 


Cartes  gdrgraphiques  en  couleur 


Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
ReliA  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reiiure  seir6e  peut  causer  de  i'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  mdrge  intArieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  rescoratlon  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
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II  se  peut  que  certalnes  pages  bianches  ajouttes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mjis,  iorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  At6  fiimies. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppKkmentaires: 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  4t4  possible  da  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibiiographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithode  normale  de  fiimage 
sont  indiqu^s  ci-dessous. 


I      I   Coloured  pages/ 


D 

n 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  ondommagi&^as 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurtes  et/ou  pellicuites 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxei 
Pages  d6coior6es,  tachetdes  ou  piqudes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  ddtachdes 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Qualit^  in6gale  de  i'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materif 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppi^mentaire 


j — I  Pages  damaged/ 

I      I  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

I      I  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I     I  Pages  detached/ 

r~~l  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I      I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 


Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mitlon  disponible 

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ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  6t6  filmies  6  nouveau  de  fapon  A 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmA  au  taux  de  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 


10X 

MX 

mx 

22X 

2fiX 

30X 

\2 

12X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

28X 

32X 

The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  \.n9  generosity  of: 

United  Church  of 
Canada  Archives 


L'exemplaire  film6  fut  reproduit  grAce  A  la 
g4n4rosit6  de: 

United  Church  of 
Canada  Archives 


The  images  appearing  hwe  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specif icatiors. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  lest  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^(meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tho  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettetA  de  rexempiaire  filmA,  et  en 
conformity  awec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimis  sont  filmis  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  fiimis  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apnaraftra  sur  la 
derniire  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — »-  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ".  le 
symbols  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmte  A  des  t.M:x  is  tdduction  diffArents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clichA,  il  est  filmA  A  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 


6 


OUTPOURINGS 


OF 


THE   SI>IRIT; 


OR, 


i 


A  NARRATIVE  OP  SPIRITUAL  AWAKENINGS  IN 
DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  COUNTRIES. 


BY 


Eev.  W.  a.  McKAY,  B.  a., 

FASTOR  OF  CHALMERS  CHURCH,  WOODSTOCK,  ONT.,  CANADA. 


-«•- 


PHILADELPHIA : 

PRESBYTERIAN  BOARD   OF   PUBLICATION 

AND  SABBATH-SCHOOL  WORK, 

No.  1884  Chestnut  Street. 


ANIVEX  ■ 
SrACK 


COPYRIGHT,    1890,    BY 

THE  TRUSTEES  OP  THE 

PRESBYTERIAN  BO^  RD  OF  PUBLICATION 
AND  SABBATH-SCHOOL  WORK. 


ALL  BIGHTS  RESERVED. 


MAR  2  9  1950 


Westcott  &,  Thomson, 
BUrtoiyptn  and  El«ctrotyper$f  PhUada, 


To  the  people  of  my  charge,  to  whom  I 
have  been  permitted  to  minister  these  twelve 
years,  and  with  whom  I  have  enjoyed  many 
seasons  of  refreshing,  this  little  book,  com- 
posed during  fragments  of  time  snatched 
from  a  busy  pastorate,  is  respectfully  dedi- 
cated by  the  Author. 


J 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  I. 

PAOB 

What  is  a  Revival? 7 

CHAPTER  II. 
Revivals  in  Bible  Times 19 

CHAPTER  III. 
Revivals  in  England 30 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Revivals  in  Scotland ,     41 

CHAPTER  V. 

Revivals  in  Ireland 66 

6 


•^Hmmw 


i 


6  COXTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Ketivals  in  America 71 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Revivals  in  Canada 84 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Revivals  and  the  Young 97 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Eminent  Revivalists  and  Honored  Tests    .    112 

CHAPTER  X. 
Shall  we  Have  a  Revival? 125 

'    •   -  /I 


ij 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


CHAPTER  I. 

WHAT  IS  A  REVIVAL t 

THE    NEED     OF    A    EEVIVAL — ENCOUEAGE- 
MENTS    TO    SEEK    FOR    IT. 

The  last  few  years  have  been  characterized 
by  powerful  revivals  of  religion.  In  Great 
Britain,  in  America,  in  Germany,  in  Switzer- 
land, in  France,  and  especially  in  India,  Ja- 
pan, and  the  far-away  isles  of  the  sea,  Pente- 
cost has  had  its  successors.  A  few  considera- 
tions concerning  the  nature  of  a  true  revival, 
our  need  of  such  a  gracious  visitation  and  the 
encouragements  we  have  to  seek  it  will  occupy 

our  attention  in  this  chapter. 

7 


8 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


What,  then,  is  a  revival  of  religion  ?  Brief- 
ly, it  means  a  season  of  special  religious  inter- 
est and  activity.  The  word  is  a  famili-ar  one. 
We  read  of  a  revival  in  the  study  of  the  fine 
arts,  a  revival  in  science  and  literature,  a  re- 
vival in  trade  and  commerce.  By  this  is  meant 
a  sudden  and  more  or  less  widespread  interest 
in  these  departments  of  business  or  learning. 
How  deep  the  interest  usually  felt  in  such  re- 
vivals! How  interested  the  merchant  is  in 
the  revival  of  trade !  How  he  watches  the 
rise  in  the  markets,  observes  the  multiplica- 
tion of  orders  and  rejoices  in  the  decrease  and 
cessation  of  failures  !  And  see  the  gardener, 
how  he  watches  the  revival  of  the  season ! 
No  sight  so  welcome  as  the  opening  leaves  of 
the  trees,  the  brightening  green  of  the  g  iss, 
the  forming  buds  of  the  flowers  and  the  prom- 
ising blossom  of  the  fruit.  Or  behold  the 
mother  bending  over  her  sick  child.  How  she 
watches  for  the  return  of  strength,  for  the 
first  sign  of  renewed  appetite,  for  the  deep- 
ening of  the  color  in  the  cheek,  the  bright- 


WHAT  IS  A    REVIVAL? 


eniug  of  the  light  in  the  eye  and  the  gather- 
ing of  strength  in  the  voice !  But  of  far 
greater  importance  and  interest  is  the  re- 
vival of  religion  in  the  soul.  This  was 
one  great  purpose  for  which  the  Son  of 
God  came  into  the  world.  "I  am  come," 
said  he,  "that  they  might  have  life,  and 
that  they  might  have  it  more  abundantly." 
A  religious  revival  is  such  an  outpouring  of 
the  Holy  Ghost  as  results  in  the  quickening 
of  believers,  the  reclaiming  of  backsliders  and 
the  conversion  of  the  unregenerate.   *^* 

The  first  effect  is  undoubtedly  upon  the 
hearts  and  lives  of  God's  own  people.  Un- 
belief gives  way  to  faith  and  dark  despond- 
ency to  bright  hope.  Christians  are  brought 
to  more  vivid  impressions  of  divine  truth, 
more  solemn  views  of  sin  and  guilt,  more 
soul-stirring  thoughts  of  the  love  of  God 
and  the  grace  of  Christ,  more  concern  for 
a  perishing  world  and  more  fervent  prayer 
for  the  Spirit.  Those  who  before  were  cold, 
formal,  heartless  in  their  worship  have  now 


10 


OUTPOCaiNGS  OF  THE  8PIEIT. 


their  hearts  filled  with  love  to  God  and  love 
to  their  fellow-men.  Those  who  before  seemed 
indifferent  to  the  salvation  of  others  now  pray 
earnestly  and  labor  zealously  to  bring  sinners 
to  Christ.  Those  who  before  were  cheerless 
and  gloomy  are  now  filled  with  a  holy  joy 
and  peace.  *^The  joy  of  the  Lord  is  their 
strength.^'  Divisions  are  now  healed,  and 
the  dovils  of  discord,  envy  and  strife  cast 
out.  The  temple  13  cleansed  and  a  higher 
standard  of  Christian  experience  attained. 
What  delight  now  in  the  house  of  God, 
what  attention  to  his  word,  what  bursts  of 
holy  song,  what  breathings  of  real  devotion, 
and  then  what  efforts  for  the  salvation  of 
souls !  Oh,  this  is  revival.  It  is  the  re- 
covery of  spiritual  health.  It  is  the  Church's 
spring-time.  It  is  the  jubilee  of  holiness. 
It  is  the  feast  of  fat  things.  It  is  the  beau- 
ty of  the  Lord.  Hear  the  ministers  and  eld- 
ers of  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  convened 
in  General  Assembly  during  that  wonderful 
work  of  grace  under  the  preaching  and  sing- 


^yHAT  IS   A   REVIVAL? 


11 


ing  of  the  American  evangeligts, — hear  these 
venerable  brethren  singing,  amid  streaming 
tears  of  joy,  the  words  of  the  one  hundred 
and  twenty-sixth  psalm : 

"  When  Zion's  bondage  God  turned  back, 

As  men  that  dream'd  were  we. 
Then  filled  with  laughter  was  our  mouth, 

Our  tongue  with  melody : 
They  *mong  the  heathen  said,  The  Lord 

Great  things  for  them  hath  wrought. 
The  Lord  hath  done  great  things  for  us, 

Whence  joy  to  us  is  brought." 

Such  an  arousing  and  intensifying  of  the 
spiritual  life  of  a  Church  cannot  fail  to  im- 
press the  masses  outside  the  Church.  Before 
such  breathing  of  the  Spirit  the  most  stub- 
born wills  bend  like  the  blades  of  grass  before 
the  wind.  Thus  the  awakening  becomes  gen- 
eral. Sinners  are  converted,  the  membership 
of  the  Church  increases  :  worldly  and  wicked 
men  may  sneer  and  misrepresent,  but  in  spite 
of  all  opposition,  the  good  work  goes  on. 
Christians  are  happy  and  angels  rejoice.  All 
this  we  see  abundantly  illustrated  in  the  lives 


12 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


of  Nehemiah,  Paul,  Luther,  Knox,  Wesley, 
Wlit^field,  Edwards,  Tennent,  Payson  and 
many  others. 

The  gracious  work  usually  begins  with  a 
single  man  or  woman.  One  live  coal  kindles 
a  great  flame.  See  the  sinner  of  Samaria. 
Her  mind  was  dark,  her  life  was  unholy,  she 
was  not  even  seeking  a  Saviour.  But  Jesus 
revealed  himself  to  her.  She  believed,  and 
instantly  she  became  a  fountain  of  life  to 
others.  And  in  that  revival  of  "  two  days  " 
(John  4  :  39-42)  many  were  saved.  The 
Spirit's  work  in  a  community,  as  in  the  in- 
dividual soul,  is  usually  like  the  water  which 
the  prophet  saw  in  his  vision,  small  at  the 
beginning — first  ankle-deep,  then  rising  to 
the  knees,  then  to  the  loins,  and  finally 
waters  to  swim  in,  a  river  that  could  not 
be   passed  over. 

Should  not  such  seasons  be  the  objects 
of  intense  desire,  fervent  prayer  and  earnest 
effort  on  the  part  of  God's  people?  It 
may,  indeed,  be  said  that  the  Church  should 


WHAT  IS  A   REVIVAL? 


13 


always  be  awake  and  thoroughly  in  earnest. 
We  readily  admit  the  "  should  be/'  but  who 
will  claim  that  the  Church  is  so  at  the  pres- 
ent time?  It  is  not  a  question  of  duty  or 
privilege,  but  a  question  of  fact.  With 
the  murderous  liquor-traflfic,  legalized  by  the 
votes  of  church-members,  in  full  blast  on 
every  side  of  us ;  with  Somanism  so  aggres- 
sive ;  with  the  spirit  of  worldliness  so  pre- 
vailing; with  immoralities  of  various  forms 
eating,  like  a  cancer,  into  the  very  heart  of 
the  community ;  with  the  overwhelming  ma- 
jority of  our  young  men  never  inside  a  Chris- 
tian church,  and  only  five  per  cent,  of  them 
members  of  the  Church;  with  our  prayer- 
meetings  so  small;  and  with  a  liberality 
amounting  to  less  than  cne-sevenih  of  a 
cent  a  day  from  each  communicant  for  the 
evangelization  of  a  thousand  million  heathen, 
— who  will  say  that  we  have  no  need  of  revival 
— no  need  of  a  revival  in  temperance,  truth- 
fulness, uprightness?  The  time  may  come 
when  the  Church  will  be  all  on  fire  of  earn- 


14 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


estness;  when  every  heart  will  be  stout  and 
every  arm  will  be  strong  in  the  conflict  against 
evil ;  when  the  Sabbath  assemblies  will  be 
crowded  and  the  prayer-meetings  times  of 
refreshing;  when  church -members,  full  of 
fthe  spirit  of  their  Master,  will  rise  above 
the  large  greeds  and  little  givings  of  former 
days,  and,  like  Araunah,  as  a  king  give  unto 
a  king,  pouring  out  their  treasures  as  brave 
warriors  do  their  blood ;  and  giving,  or  at 
least  striving  to  give,  after  the  measure  of 
Him  who,  that  we  and  a  lost  world  might 
not  perish,  gave  his  only-begotten  Son.  But 
the  time  is  not  yet. 

The  ideal  Church  will  be  always  earnest, 
active,  hopeful,  full  of  spiritual  life  and  joy. 
But  the  actual  Church  is  often  weak  in  faith, 
poor  in  effort  and  low  in  experience.  At  such 
a  time  ought  not  our  earnest  cry  to  ascend, 
"  Wilt  thou  not  revive  us  again,  that  thy 
people  may  rejoice  in  thee?"  If  already 
we  have  some  degree  of  spiritual  life  and 
vigor,   would    it   not   be  better   if  we  had 


WHAT   IS   A    REVIVAL? 


16 


more?  Look  at  animated  nature.  There 
are  the  lower  orders  of  life  and  the  higher. 
In  the  higher  we  find  much  sensitiveness,  con- 
sciousness, energy,  heat  and  expression,  while 
in  the  lower  we  see  but  little.  So  there  are 
Christians  who  are  barely  living,  and  others 
who  have  'Mife  more  abundantly.''  About 
the  lowest  order  of  life  is  a  small  jelly-like 
thing  which  does  nothing  more  than  stick 
to  the  substance  on  which  it  feeds.  Are 
there  not  too  many  Christians  who  are  bone- 
less, nerveless  jelly-fish  "  hangers-on  "  in  the 
Church?  How  many  professing  Christians 
are  fast  asleep !  Rev.  Dr.  Rice  of  Virginia 
declares  his  solemn  conviction  that  four-fifths 
of  the  membership  of  our  churches  add  noth- 
ing to  the  real  power  of  the  Church, 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  spiritual 
life,  whether  in  the  individual  or  in  a  com- 
munity, is  seldom,  if  ever,  uniform.  There 
are  seasons  of  declension.  "  My  people,"  saith 
the  Lord,  "  are  bent  to  backsliding  from  me." 
Who  that  considers  the  condition  of  modern 


16 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


society,  the  keen  competition  in  business,  the 
craving  for  run  isements  and  sports  of  every 
kind,  the  excitement  of  politics  and  the  high 
strain  at  which  we  live,  but  must  admit  the 
terrible  power  of  those  influences  which,  at 
the  present  time,  distract  even  the  most  seri- 
ous Christians  and  tend  to  divert  their  minds 
from  close  and  constant  intercourse  with  heav- 
en? Where  is  the  Christian  assembly  in 
which  there  is  no  reason  to  lament  the  prev- 
alence of  siuful  conformity  to  the  world,  the 
decay  of  piety  and  the  lukewarmness  of  many 
professors  ?  Where  is  the  Christian  who  does 
not  find  within  himself  a  proneness  to  decline 
from  the  spirit  and  power  of  godliness  ?  We 
become  weary  in  well-doing.  Indifference, 
apathy,   deadness  come  upon   us. 

"  With  outstretched  hands  and  streaming  eyes, 
Oft  I  begin  to  grasp  the  prize ; 
I  groan,  I  strive,  I  watch,  I  pray ; 
But  ah !  my  zeal  soon  dies  away.'' 

How   is   this  downward   tendency  to  be 
checked?    Obviously,  the  only  remedy  for 


WHAT   IS  A   REVIVAL? 


17 


a  season  of  spiritual  declension  is  a  season 
of  spiritual  revival. 

"  Rise,  Lord,  stir  up  thy  quickening  power 
And  wake  me  that  I  sleep  no  more." 

The  encouragements  to  seek  a  revival  of 
religion  are  many  and  great.  God  is  willing 
to  revive  us.  His  pleasure  is  the  prosperity 
of  Zion  and  the  conversion  of  the  world. 
His  promise  is,  "  I  will  pour  out  ray  Spirit 
upon  all  flesh.''  "  Thou  shalt  arise,  and  have 
mercy  upon  Zion ;  for  the  time  to  favor  her, 
yea,  the  set  time,  is  come.''  We  are  living  in 
the  dispensation  of  the  Spirit.  Supposing  the 
Christians  of  our  land  were  as  dead  as  the 
bones  Ezekiel  saw  in  his  vision,  and  as  sep- 
arated, one  from  another,  as  were  they,  yet  in 
response  to  earnest,  persevering  prayer  for  a 
revival  the  Almighty  will  bring  eveiy  bone 
to  his  bone,  or  will  clothe  and  bind  them  with 
flesh  and  sinew,  and  cover  them  with  skin ; 
yea,  he  will  breathe  upon  the  yet  lifeless 
forms  and  they  shall  live;  yea,  they  shall 


lilt 


18 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


live  a  united  and  strong  army  to  do  val- 
iantly for  the  Lord  God  of  truth  and  mercy. 
This  indeed  would  be  a  day  of  life,  of  joy,  of 
power.  May  the  Lord  send  such  a  season  to 
all  the  churches!  "Awake!  awake!  put  on 
thy  strength,  O  Zion  !  put  on  thy  beautiful 
garments,  O  Jerusalem.''  "Arise,  shine;  for 
thy  light  is  cokne,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord 
is  risen  upon  thee.''  fjhowers  of  blessings  are 
descending  here  and  there.  "  Ye  that  make 
mention  of  the  Lord  keep  not  silence,  and  give 
him  no  rest,  till  he  establish,  and  till  he  make 
Jerusalem  a  praise  in  the  earth." 


%   *      „    J./-: 


CHAPTER  II. 


BEVIVALS  IN  BIBLE  TIMES. 


prejudices  against  revivals — ^the  gen- 
uine must  not  be  rejected  because  op 
the  counterfeit — incidental  excesses 
— revivals  in  the  days  of  enoch, 
moses,  joshua;  in  the  time  of  the 
judges;  in  the  days  of  samuel,  Eli- 
jah, JONAH,  HEZEKIAH  AND  NEHEMIAH 
— NEW-TESTAMENT  REVIVALS,  AND  THEIR 
GLORIOUS  RESULTS. 

It  is  well  known  that  a  strong  prejudice 
exists  amongst  some  good  Christians  against 
what  are  termed  "  revivals  of  religion."  Per- 
haps this  is  not  to  be  wondered  at.  There  has 
been  so  much  defective  if  not  erroneous  teach- 
ing, so  much  fanatical  excitement  and  so  much 
hollow  profession,  connected  with  some  so-called 

19 


20 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  8PIHIT. 


i; 


revivals  that  it  is  not  surprising  that  many 
earnest  but  sober-minded  Christians  have  ac- 
quired a  distaste  for  the  very  word  "  revival/^ 
But  let  us  beware  of  rejecting  the  genuine  gold 
because  of  its  worthless  counterfeit. 

It  is  only  the  good,  the  precious,  that  is 
counterfeited.  Were  there  no  true  Chris- 
tians, there  would  be  no  false  ones,  and 
were  there  no  real  revivals,  there  would  be 
no  imitations. 

How  careful  also  we  should  be  lest  we  dis- 
countenance a  real  work  of  grace  because  of 
some  things  which  occasionally  may  accom- 
pany it !  There  may  many  things  occur  dur- 
ing a  season  of  special  religious  interest  that 
do  not  constitute  a  part  of  the  revival.  When 
Whitefield  was  once  preaching  in  Boston,  the 
place  was  so  packed  that  the  gallery  was  sup- 
posed to  be  giving  way,  and  there  was  a  panic 
in  which  several  persons  were  trampled  to 
death.  But  it  would  be  unfair  and  unrea- 
sonable to  blame  the  revival  for  this.  Con- 
nected with   many  revivals  there  has  been 


EEVIVALS   IN   BIBLE  TIME8. 


21 


much  of  an  emotional  and  spasmodical  char- 
acter. But  these  are  only  incidental.  The 
adventitious  is  not  to  be  confounded  with  the 
essential.  We  do  not  despise  the  great  river 
because  of  the  sticks  and  straws  that  may  oc- 
casionally float  on  its  surface.  The  greatest 
possible  evil  is  a  deadly  insensibility.  The 
storm  is  preferable  to  a  parching  drought. 
Better,  if  that  were  necessary,  to  have  noisy 
animal  excitement  than  that  the  sterile  wastes 
of  worldliness  should  not  be  transformed  into 
fruitful  gardens  of  the  Lord.  Notwithstanding 
incidental  excesses,  there  is  such  a  thing  as  a 
true  revival  of  religion.  The  psalmist  when 
he  prayed,  "  Wilt  thou  not  revive  us  again  V^ 
was  not  guilty  of  presumption  and  mockery ; 
nor  the  prophet  when  he  cried,  "  O  Lord,  re- 
vive thy  work  in  the  midst  of  the  years,  in 
the  midst  of  the  years  make  known ;  in  wrath 
remember  mercy."  God's  promise  is  not  a 
meaningless  one :  "  I  will  be  as  the  dew  unto 
Israel ;  he  shall  grow  as  the  lily,  and  cast  forth 
his  roots  as  Lebanon.  His  branches  shall  spread, 


22 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


and  his  beauty  shall  be  as  the  olive  tree,  aud 
his  smell  as  Lebanon/'  In  this  chapter  we 
shall  look  at  some  of  the  revivals  in  Bible 
times. 

Under  the  old  dispensation  there  were  many 
seasons  when  the  people  felt  the  nearness  of  the 
Lord  and  the  power  of  his  Spirit  in  an  extra- 
ordinary manner.  We  have  a  glimpse  of  such 
a  season  in  the  days  of  Enoch,  when  "  men  be- 
gan to  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord."  That 
was  a  genuine  revival  of  religion  when  Moses, 
after  communing  with  God  on  the  mount  for 
forty  days  and  forty  nights,  called  the  people 
together,  gave  them  the  commandments  of  the 
Lord  and  spoke  to  them  particularly  concern- 
ing the  building  of  the  tabernacle.  Great  in- 
deed was  the  exuberance  of  their  devotion. 
Every  man  and  woman  did  offer  willingly 
unto  the  Lord  of  the  gold  and  the  silver  and 
the  jewels,  and  of  the  blue,  the  purple  and  the 
scarlet  and  fine  linen,  and  of  all  their  posses- 
sions. So  freely  and  liberally  did  the  people 
contribute  that  Moses  was  compelled  to  send 


REVIVALS  IN   BIBLE  TIMES. 


23 


forth  a  proclamation  restraining  them  from 
bringing  any  more.  What  a  blessing  such  a 
revival  would  be  to  the  empty  treasury  and 
languishing  mission  schemes  of  many  congre- 
gations at  the  present  time!  We  have  the 
record  of  a  powerful  religious  awakening  iu 
the  last  chapter  of  the  book  of  Joshua.  All 
Israel  is  gathered  at  Shechem,  and  Joshua, 
old  and  about  to  die,  gives  them  his  farewell 
words  of  warning  and  exhortation.  "Put 
away,"  said  he,  "the  strange  gods  which 
are  among  you,  and  incline  your  heart  unto 
the  Lord  God  of  Israel.  And  the  people 
saith  unto  Joshua,  The  Lord  our  God  will 
we  serve,  and  his  voice  will  we  obey.''  That 
day  they  renewed  their  covenant  with  God. 
Nor  were  the  results  of  this  awakening  spas- 
modic or  shortlived,  for  "  Israel  served  the 
Lord  all  the  days  of  Joshua,  and  all  the  days 
of  the  elders  that  outlived  Joshua." 

We  read  of  a  revival  of  religion  in  the  time 
of  the  Judges,  when  "  Israel  cried  unto  the 
Lord,"  and  he  raised  up  Deborah  and  Barak 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


i 


to  rescue  them  from  Jabin  and  Sisera ;  and  in 
the  days  of  Samuel,  when  *''  Israel  lamented 
after  the  Lord/^  and  he  thundered  upon  the 
Philistines  and  discomfited  them ;  and  in  the 
days  of  Elijah,  when  the  prophet  triumphed 
gloriously,  and  the  people,  ct^nvinced  and  re- 
pentant, fell  upon  their  faces  crying,  "The 
Lord,  he  is  the  God !  The  Lord,  he  is  the 
God !"  and  in  the  days  of  Jonah,  when  the 
voice  of  the  stranger,  preaching  in  the  streets, 
carried  conviction  and  penitence  into  the  hearts 
of  all  the  people  of  Nineveh  from  the  king  to 
the  beggar;  and  in  the  days  of  Hezekiah, 
when  "  a  very  great  congregation ''  assembled 
at  Jerusalem  to  observe  the  passover,  and  a 
series  of  "special  services''  was  held  for 
two  successive  weeks  amidst  "great  glad- 
ness" because  of  answered  prayer  and  spir- 
itual blessing. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  revivals  re- 
corded in  the  Old  Testament  is  that  of  which 
we  read  in  the  eighth  chapter  of  Nehemiah. 
For  eight  days  all  the  people  were  gathered 


REVIVALS  IN   BIBLE  TIMES. 


25 


in  the  street.  The  time  was  occupied  with 
B'ble-reading,  free  coDversation,  prayer,  praise 
and  confession  of  sin.  There  was  "  very  great 
gladness,"  also  deep  conviction,  for  "  all  the 
people  wept  when  they  heard  the  words  of  the 
law."  "  And  Ezra  blessed  the  Lord,  the  great 
God.  And  all  the  people  answered  Amen, 
Amen,  with  lifting  up  their  hands ;  and  they 
bowed  their  heads,  and  worshiped  the  Lord 
with  their  faces  to  the  ground."  Many  of 
the  Psalms  bear  striking  testimony  to  special 
manifestations  of  the  mighty  power  of  God 
in  reviving  his  people. 

Coming  to  the  New  Testament,  we  find  fre- 
quent and  powerful  revivals  of  religion.  This 
is  the  dispensation  of  the  Spirit.  Christianity 
was  born  in  a  great  revival.  "  From  the  days 
of  John  the  Baptist  until  now  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  suffereth  violence,  and  the  vio- 
lent take  it  by  force."  What  awakenings 
under  the  preaching  of  John  and  Jesus,  of 
James  and  his  brother  John,  of  Peter  and  of 
Paul,  of  Silas  and  of  Barnabas  I    How  won- 


26 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIBIT. 


derful  the  baptism  of  the  Spirit  on  the  day 
of  Pentecost,  when  three  thousand  were  con- 
verted under  the  preaching  of  one  sermon! 
And  so  on  through  the  apostolic  age.  Those 
were  the  days  of  heaven  upon  earth.  Con- 
verts were  then  daily  added  unto  the  Church. 
Sometimes  they  came  by  tens  and  sometimes 
by  thousands,  and  "great  grace  was  upon  theLi 
all."  What  an  experience  believers  then  had  ! 
What  communion  with  God !  What  joy  in 
the  Holy  Ghost !  What  tender  sympathy 
with  one  another !  The  rich  cheerfully  gave 
of  their  abundance  to  supply  the  wants  of  the 
poor,  and  believers  abounded  in  prayers  and 
good  works. 

The  history  of  Christianity  during  the  first 
three  centuries  is  a  history  of  one  almost  un- 
broken revival.  The  gales  of  the  Spirit  then 
blew  with  unwonted  freshness.  The  Church 
was  all  on  fire  with  earnestness.  Christians 
wei'e  Christians  indeed.  They  believed  what 
they  professed  ;  they  knew  what  thej  spoke ; 
they  testified  what  they  had  seen ;  and,  filled 


BEVIYALS  IN  BIBLE  TIMES. 


27 


with  an  irrepressible  life,  they  went  forward 
with  an  unconquerable  energy  which  even  the 
iron  power  of  Rome  could  not  resist.  There 
were  no  honorary  members  in  the  Church. 
Every  disciple  felt  that  the  Lord's  last  com- 
mand was  addressed  to  him,  and  whatever  his 
circumstances — whether  he  moved  in  Csesar's 
household  or,  like  Lydia,  in  the  pursuit  of 
humble  commerce — he  sought  to  publish  the 
glad  news.  Nor  was  the  preaching  confined, 
as  is  too  much  the  case  in  our  day,  to  places 
specially  set  apart  for  that  purpose,  but  they 
went  from  house  to  house ;  they  went  to  the 
river-side,  to  the  street-corners,  to  the  market- 
places, as  well  as  to  the  synagogues.  His- 
tory tells  us  of  the  rapid  and  far-reaching 
results.  Without  our  modern  facilities  for 
travel  or  our  multiplied  agencies  for  mission- 
ary work,  in  less  than  three  centuries  from 
the  death  of  Christ  the  cross  was  uplifted 
in  every  land,  the  name  of  Jesus  was  pro- 
claimed in  every  known  dialect,  mission- 
aries passed  through  the  deserts,  penetrated 


f 


' 


28 


OXTTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


into  the  remote  recesses  of  uncivilized  coun- 
tries and  the  whole  known  world  was  evan- 
gelized. 

But,  alas !  in  her  prosperity  the  Church  for- 
got God.  Her  faith  became  corrupted,  her  love 
waxed  cold,  and  consequently  her  activity  de- 
clined. Under  Constantine  she  entered  into  an 
alliance  with  the  world.  The  great  papal  apos- 
tasy followed.  The  Man  of  Sin,  who  "  oppos- 
eth  and  exalteth  himself  above  all  that  is  called 
God,"  appeared,  and  for  about  one  thousand 
years  darkness  covered  the  whole  earth  and 
gross  darkness  the  people,  until  the  light  was 
restored  and  the  Church  was  redeemed  by 
those  wonderful  revivals  of  rcMgion  that  fol- 
lowed the  faithful  preaching  of  the  word  by 
Huss,  Jerome  of  Prague,  Wyclif,  Luther, 
Calvin,  Knox,  Farel  and  the  great  host  of 
British  and  continental  Reformers  and  mar- 
tyrs. We  have  said  enough  to  show  that  re- 
ligious revivals,  instead  of  being  something  to 
be  dreaded  or  regarded  with  suspicion,  consti- 
tute an  important  factor  in  the  divine  econ- 


REVIVALS   IN   BIBIi:  TIMES. 


29 


omy  in  carrying  on  the  work  of  grace  in  the 
world. 

"  There  is  not,"  says  one,  "  a  denomination 
in  Christendom  to-day  that  has  not  sprung 
out  of  a  revival."  He  who  indiscriminately 
condemns  revivals  is  really  challenging  the 
ways  of  the  Almighty  and  fighting  against 
God. 


■wr 


II  •• 


1 


CHAPTER  III. 

BEVIVALS  IN  ENGLAND. 

WyCLIF,  his  "  PRIESTS  "  AND  LAY-PBEACH- 
ERS,  AND  THEIR  WORK — LUTHER,  CRAN- 
MER,  RIDLEY,  LATIMER  AND  HOOPER — 
THE  PREACHING  OF  THE  PURITANS 
CHARACTERIZED — THE  WESLEYS  AND 
THEIR  TIMES — WHITEFIELD  AND  HIS 
WORK — ^THE  METHODIST  CHURCH  AND 
REVIVALS. 

Although  the  term  "  revival '^  was  not 
generally  applied  to  active  religious  move- 
ments in  the  fourteenth  century,  yet  even  at 
that  date  England  experienced  an  awakening 
which  might  well  be  called  by  that  name.  To 
Wyclif,  "  the  Morning  Star  of  the  Reforma- 
tion,'' must  be  given  the  credit  of  inaugurat- 
ing this  movement.  The  key-note  of  the  pe- 
so 


BEVIVALS   IN  ENGLAND. 


31 


riod  was  "  an  open  Bible."  Too  long  it  had 
been  a  sealed  book.  But  Wvclif  made  a  re- 
markably  faithful  translation  from  the  Vul- 
gate, and  the  people  were  exhorted  to  study 
that  blessed  book  for  themselves.  He  regard- 
ed the  Scriptures  as  the  supreme  authority. 
'*  Even  though  there  were  a  hundred  popes, 
and  all  the  monks  were  transformed  into  car- 
dinals, in  matters  of  faith  their  opinion  would 
be  of  no  account  unless  they  were  founded  on 
Scripture." 

Realizing  that  it  was  impossible  for  a  single 
individual  to  accomplish  all  that  was  required 
to  be  done,  he  organized  a  company  of  itin- 
erants who  could  carry  the  gospel  far  and 
wide.  These  men  were  students  and  grad- 
uates of  Oxford,  and  were  known  as  the 
"poor  priests."  But  though  poor  in  this 
world's  goods,  they  were  rich  in  faith  and 
good  works,  and  they  emulated  the  zeal, 
the  heroism,  the  devotion  and  the  enthu- 
siasm of  their  master.  To  render  the  work 
still    more  effectual,  he  sent    forth  a  com- 


32 


OUTPOURINGS   OF  THE  8PIKIT. 


pany  of  lay-preachers,  who  labored  princi- 
pally around  Oxford  and  Gloucester.  Clad 
in  the  plainest  garments,  without  shoes 
and  armed  only  with  a  staff,  they  traveled 
through  the  country  and  summoned  men  to 
repentance.  Although  the  results  of  this 
movement  cannot  now  be  tabulated,  yet 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  efforts  of 
Wyclif,  as  well  as  those  of  his  "poor 
priests"  and  lay-preachers,  were  crowned 
with  great  success.  Many  of  the  clergy 
were  induced  to  lead  purer  lives;  many  of 
the  careless  awakened  ;  many  of  the  thought- 
less aroused ;  many  of  the  defiant  made  peni- 
tent; and  the  moral  tone  of  many  districts 
was  greatly  elevated  and  purified. 

But  gradually  the  Church  was  lulled  to  sleep 
again,  and,  though  dreamily  opening  her  eyes 
as  spasmodic  efforts  were  made  here  and  there, 
she  was  not  thoroughly  aroused  till  the  six- 
teenth century.  Then  the  trumpet-blasts  of 
Luther  in  Germany  were  heard  in  England, 
and  the  strains  were  echoed  by  such  men  as 


REVIVALS  IN   ENGLAND. 


33 


Cranmer,  Ridley,  Latimer  and  Hooper.  Their 
movement  met  a  serious  cheek  during  the  reign 
of  Bloody  Mary,  but  was  revived  with  fresh 
power  under  the  Puritan  divines.  Great  in- 
deed was  the  impetus  given  to  spiritual  life 
and  activity  through  the  characteristic  preach- 
ing of  these  men.  The  style  of  their  preach- 
ing was  clear,  logical  and  doctrinal ;  the  tone 
was  calm  and  subdued ;  and  if  it  lacked  the 
"fire"  that  characterized  some  of  the  later 
English  revivals,  it  was  eminently  calculated 
nevertheless  to  tear  down  the  props  of  self- 
righteousness  and  to  build  up  a  vigorous  type 
of  Christian  character. 

The  third  and  grandest  of  the  English  re- 
vivals was  inaugurated  in  the  last  century  by 
the  "  Holy  Club ''  or  "  Methodists  ''—names 
given  in  derision  to  the  Wesleys  and  their 
like-minded  fellow-students,  who  met  regu- 
larly on  stated  days  of  the  week  at  Oxford, 
for  prayer,  Bible-study  and  mutual  edifica- 
tion. There  was  a  crying  need  for  a  fresh 
baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost.     With  the  res- 

3 


Ail 

Sri 
m 

j!;f  ■ 
1^1 


1 


34 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


toration  of  the  Stuarts  there  rolled  in  a  flood 
of  licentiousness  which  swept  away  almost 
every  barrier  interposed  by  religion  for  the 
safety  of  good  manners  and  morals.  Many 
of  the  upper  classes  were  saturated  with  in- 
fidelity, while  many  of  the  lower  were  shame- 
fully ignorant  of  the  first  principles  of  Script- 
ure truth.  "The  Church/'  says  one,  "was 
a  fair  carcass  without  the  Spirit."  Many  of 
the  clergymen  were  ignorant  of  theology,  and 
in  their  preaching  they  passed  the  gospel  by 
on  the  other  side.  Sad  to  say,  not  a  few 
of  them  went  drunk  into  the  pulpit.  The 
river  of  life  seemed  to  be  frozen  over.  "  Eng- 
land,'' says  Isaac  Taylor,  himself  a  Church- 
man, "had  lapsed  into  virtual  heathenism 
when  Wesley  appeared."  "No  man  could 
tell,"  says  Cardinal  Manning,  "  into  how  deep 
a  degradation  England  would  have  sunk  had 
it  not  been  for  the  preaching  of  John  Wes- 
ley." But  the  darkest  hour  is  just  before 
the  dawn,  and  about  the  year  1730  gleams 
of  light  began  to  stream  out  from  Oxford. 


REVIVALS   IN   ENGLAND. 


35 


The  light  glimmered  for  a  short  time  in 
London,  where  George  Whitefield  spent  a 
few  days  preparatory  to  his  embarking  for 
America.  A  few  months  afterward  it  burst 
in  full  glory  upon  the  crude,  benighted,  irre- 
ligious colliers  in  Kingswood,  where  White- 
field,  who  had  returned  from  America,  began 
the  then  unpopular  practice  of  field-preach- 
ing. His  preaching  was  indeed  a  revelation 
to  these  men.  They  had  been  so  long  neg- 
lected that  they  had  become  coarse  and  brutal. 
So  much  terror  did  their  very  name  inspire 
that  scarcely  any  one  would  venture  to  go 
among  them.  But  Whitefield  was  no  coward. 
The  door  was  opened  and  he  entered.  This 
was  on  Feb.  17,  1739.  The  effect  was  mar- 
velous. From  their  sooty  pits  these  swarthy 
coi  3rs  listened  with  uplifted  faces  and  stream- 
ing eyes  to  the  words  of  life.  Whitefield  him- 
self says :  "  The  first  discovery  of  their  being 
affected  was  to  see  the  white  gutters  made  by 
their  tears,  which  plentifully  flowed  down  their 
cheeks  as  they  came  out  of  their  coal-pits.'' 


36 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


It  was  DO  unusual  sight  to  see  an  audience 
of  twenty  thousand  persons,  and  sometimes 
sixty  thousand,  many  of  them  visibly  affected. 
"  Probably,"  writes  one,  "  no  other  uninspired 
man  ever  preached  to  so  large  assemblies  or 
enforced  the  simple  truths  of  the  gospel  by 
motives  so  persuasive  and  awful,  and  with  an 
influence  so  powerful  upon  the  hearts  of  his 
hearers."  A  single  incident  will  serve  to  show 
the  power  of  Whitefield's  oratory.  Chester- 
field was  listening  on  one  occasion  while  V/hite- 
field  described  the  sinner  as  a  blind  beggar  led 
by  a  dog.  By-and-by  the  dog  left  him,  so  he 
was  forced  to  grope  his  way  guided  only  by  his 
staff.  Continuing,  the  preacher  said, "  Uncon- 
sciously he  wanders  to  the  edge  of  a  precipice ; 
his  staff  drops  from  his  hand  down  the  abyss, 
too  far  to  send  back  an  echo :  he  reaches  for- 
ward cautiously  to  recover  it ;  for  a  moment 
he  is  poised  on  vacancy,  and — "  "Grood 
God  !  he  is  gone  !"  shouted  Chesterfield  as  he 
sprung  from  his  seat  to  prevent  the  catas- 
trophe. 


REVIVALS   IN   ENGLAND. 


37 


From  Kingswood  the  niovenient  spread  to 
the  neighboring  town  of  Bristol,  wliere  White- 
field  was  joined  by  John  Wesley.  The  latter 
had  some  scruples  against  field-preaching,  but 
under  the  persuasion  of  his  companion  he  set 
them  aside.  It  was  a  good  thing  for  these 
two  great  preachers  that  they  were  shut  out 
of  the  churches ;  they  might  have  been  shut 
in.  Day  by  day  the  interest  deepened.  Thou- 
sands flocked  to  hear  the  preachers,  and  both 
before  and  after  service  hundreds  came  to  in- 
quire the  way  of  salvation.  The  opposition 
was  mighty,  but  not  almighty,  and  divine 
grace  prevailed.  Moorfield,  Gloucester,  Hal- 
stead,  Dedham,  Ipswich,  Withersfield,  Col- 
chester and  other  places  w^ere  visited,  and  in 
all  a  gracious  work  was  accomplished.  In 
Moorfield  in  a  single  day  about  three  hun- 
dred were  converted.  "Give  me,"  said  John 
Wesley,  "one  hundred  preachers  who  fear 
nothing  but  sin  and  desire  nothing  but  God, 
and  I  care  not  a  straw  whether  they  be  cler- 
gymen o£  laymen ;  thv.y  alone  will  shake  the 


rwpi 


•38 


OUTPOURINGS   OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


gat\3s  of  hell  and  set  up  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  upon  earth."  He  got  his  heart's 
desire. 

The  early  preachers  of  Methodism,  though 
for  the  most  jiart  strangers  to  college-train- 
ing, were  men  of  conviction,  men  of  courage, 
and,  if  not  profusely  adorned  with  literary 
titles,  they  were  certainly  behind  none  of  u» 
in  faith,  in  zeal,  in  self-sacrifice  and  in  a  de- 
termination to  win  the  world  for  Christ.  The 
gates  of  hell  were  indeed  shaken,  Satan  was 
aroused,  and  the  preachers  were  subject  to  al- 
most every  form  of  insult  and  outrage.  They 
were  mobbed  and  spit  upon,  and  not  infre- 
quently they  returned  from  a  religious  service 
bleeding  with  wounds.  But  sometimes  "  fools 
who  came  to  scoff  remained  to  pray."  On 
one  occasion  Wesley  was  preaching  in  a  barn. 
At  the  close  of  the  service  a  man  emerged 
from  his  hiding-place  in  the  hay-loft,  and 
with  club  in  hand  thus  accosted  tlie  preacher : 
"I  came  here,  sir,  to  break  your  head,  but 
you  have  broken  my  heart."     So  true  is  it 


REVIVALS   IN  ENGLAND. 


39 


that  God  is  sometimes  found  of  those  who  are 
not  seeking  him. 

Fortunately  for  the  cause  of  Methodism  and 
for  Christianity  in  England,  John  Wesley  was 
a  master  organizer.  His  brother  Charles  sup- 
plied the  hymns  which  were  then  and  are  still 
such  a  power  in  the  Methodist  Church,  and  no 
less  than  thirty  of  which  are  found  in  the  Hym- 
nal lately  authorized  by  the  General  Assembly 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Canada.  Men 
of  apostolic  zeal,  like  Fletcher  and  Dr.  Coke, 
did  much  to  advance  early  Methodism.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  to  the  great  awakening  in 
which  Wesley  and  Whitefield  were  the  leaders 
may  be  traced  back  many  of  the  ever-widening 
and  deepening  streams  of  religious  beneficence 
of  the  present  day. 

The  history  of  the  wonderful  progress  of 
Methodism  since  the  days  of  Wesley  is  almost 
a  continuous  history  of  revivals.  To  only  one 
of  these  can  we  here  refer,  and  that  in  the  brief- 
est terms.  Many  on  this  side  of  the  Atlan- 
tic will  distinctly  remember  the  Rev.  James 


BR 


40 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


Caugliey.  Wonderful  indeed  was  the  power 
of  the  grace  of  God  as  seen  in  the  labors  of  this 
man  in  many  parts  ot  England.  During  the 
two  years  1845  and  1846  more  than  ten  luou- 
sand  persons  professed  to  have  been  converted 
through  him. 

We  look  at  tlie  great  Methodist  Church 
throughout  the  world  to-day  with  five  million 
oommunicants  and  twenty-five  million  adli<e- 
rents,  so  evangelical,  so  earnest,  so  mighty  a 
power  for  good,  and  we  ask,  How  did  tlt^ 
Church  attain  its  present  position  and  char- 
acter within  the  comparatively  short  period 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty  years?  The  reply 
comes :  Its  converts  have  been  made  not 
one  now  and  another  again,  but  they  have 
come  in  by  fifties,  by  hundreds  and  by  thou- 
sands under  mighty  outpourings  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  The  Metliodist  Church  is  a  revival 
Church,  and  we  thank  God  for  revivals. 


;  --=;•.   1 


CHAPTER  IV. 


"  "■  '.i'x 


REVIVALS  IN  SCOTLAND, 


AN    ERROR    CORRECTED — PRESBYTERIANISM 

IN     SCOTLAND     BORN     IN     A     REVIVAL 

KNOX,  WISHART,  COOPER — THE  GENERAL 
ASSEMBLY  OF  1596 — JOHN  LIVINGSTONE 
AND  THE  KIRK-OP-SHOTTS  REVIVAL — 
OTHER  AWAKENINGS — REV.  W.  C.  BURNS 
AND  KILSYTH — REV.  R.  MCCHEYNE  AND 
THE  REVIVAL  AT  DUNDEE — THE  ^*  LAY- 
MElir's  REVIVAL '' — THE  MOODY  AND  SAN- 
KEY   REVIVAL. 

^*  Presbyterians  don't  believe  in  revivals." 
So  wrote  a  youthful  member  of  the  Church  to  a 
minister  who  was  at  the  time  assisting  a  brother 
in  special  evangelistic  services.  At  the  funeral 
of  Jabez  Bunting,  when  the  officiating  clergy- 
man declared  that  there  was  not  such  another 

41 


42 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


just  and  good  niau  living  as  Jabez  Bunting,  a 
somewhat  eccentric  but  veracious  woman  cried 
out,  "  Thank  God,  that's  a  lie  !"  I  was  strik- 
ingly reminded  of  this  gQod  woman's  reply 
when  I  read  the  statement,  "Presbyterians 
don't  believe  in  revivals."  On  page  822  of 
the  Minutes  of  the  Second  General  Council  of 
the  Presbyterian  Alliance,  which  met  at  Phil- 
adelphia, 1880, 1  find  the  following  statement : 
"  It  is  a  matter  of  record  that  probably  seven- 
eighths  of  the  hundreds  of  thousands  of  Pres- 
byterian communicants  in  America  are  the 
fruits  of  these  blessed  means  of  grace  "  (revi- 
vals). Presbyterians  may,  indeed,  conscien- 
tiously differ  from  some  of  their  fellow-Chris- 
tians as  to  the  best  means  and  methods  of  con- 
ducting and  promoting  revivals,  but  they  most 
assuredly  believe  in  revivals,  and  no  Church 
on  earth  owes  more  than  the  Presbyterian  to 
powerful  and  extensive  awakenings. 

We  will  look  in  this  chapter  at  her  history 
in  Scotland.  There  she  was  born  in  a  revival, 
and  has  prospered  largely  by  means  of  revivals; 


1 1 


REVIVALS   IN  SCOTLAND. 


43 


and  to-day  her  clear  apprehension,  unflinching 
maintenance  and  earnest  propagation  of  Script- 
ure truth  evince  her  origin  and  her  history. 
See  the  earnestness  of  John  Knox,  who  under 
the  burden  of  souls  could  not  sleep,  but,  leav- 
ing his  bed  in  the  cold  night,  knelt  down  and 
prayed  for  Scotland ;  and  when  his  wife  im- 
portuned him  to  come  back  to  the  pillow, 
replied,  *^  Woman,  how  can  I  sleep  when  my 
country  is  not  saved  ?    O  God !  give  me  Scot- 
land or  I  die  !"   Under  the  preaching  of  John 
Knox,  George  Wishart,  William  Cooper  and 
other  men  with  glowing  hearts  and  tongues  of 
fire  Scotland  from  centre  to  circumference  was 
aroused  from  spiritual  slumber,  redeemed  from 
the  blight  of  the  papacy,  and  a  direction  was 
given  to  the  whole  of  modern  Scottish  thought 
that  has  made  itself  felt  throughout  the  civil- 
ized world.     A  gracious  rain  descended  on  the 
pastures  of  the  wilderness,  and  the  thirsty  land 
became  springs  of  water.    "  The  whole  nation," 
says  the  historian,  "  was  converted  by  lump. 
Lo !  here  a  nation  born  in  a  day.'' 


44 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


It  would  be  difficult  to  estimate  the  far- 
reaching  influence  of  that  mighty  outpouring 
of  the  Spirit  upon  the  General  Assembly  of 
1596,  when  more  than  four  hundred  ministers 
and  elders  humbled  theraseh'^es  before  God 
with  "sighs  and  groans  and  shedding  of 
penitential  tears."  These  were  also  the  days 
when  the  venerable  Bruce  preached  with  such 
power  at  Edinburgh,  the  house  of  Gc  be- 
coming literally  "a  Bochim,"  a  place  of 
weeping. 

Who  has  not  heard  of  that  memorable  day 
in  the  history  of  Scottish  Presbyterianism 
(Monday,  June  21,  1630)  when  John  Liv- 
ingstone, only  twenty-seven  years  of  age  and 
not  yet  ordained,  took  his  stand  on  a  tomb- 
stone in  the  churchyard  at  the  Kirk  of  Shotts, 
and  preached  amid  a  heavy  shower  of  rain ; 
but  the  Spirit  of  God  came  down  with  such 
power  that  nearly  five  hundred  souls  were 
converted  in  one  day?  Nor  did  the  good 
work  cease  on  that  day,  "It  was,''  says 
Fleming,    "the   sowing  of  a  seed   through 


REVIVALS   IN  SCOTLAND. 


45 


Clydesdale,  so  that  many  of  the  most  emi- 
nent Christians   in    that  country  could  date 
either  their  conversion  or  some  remarkable  con- 
:rmation  from  it."     Again,  in  1638  refresh- 
ing showers  of  divine  influence  were  poured 
on  many  congregations,  so  that  Livingstone 
said,  "  In  all  my  lifetime,  excepting  at  the 
Kirk  of  Shotts,  I  never  saw  such   motions 
from  the  Spirit  of  God.     I  have  seen  more 
than  a  thousand  pei'sons  all  at  once  lifting 
up  their  hands  and  tears  falling  down  from 
their  eyes.''      Space  will    not   permit   us   to 
dwell  upon  the  great  spiritual  awakenings  that 
occurrjed  in  1742  atCambuslang  and  Kilsyth, 
at  Campsie  and  Calder,  and  in  all  the  regions 
round  about.     Saints  were  quickened,  sinners 
were  converted  and  God  was  glorified. 

In  1771,  under  the  preaching  of  White- 
field,  the  mighty  power  of  God  was  seen  in 
many  places,  particularly  at  a  place  called 
Ijundie,  five  miles  north  of  Dundee.  Scarce- 
I3'  had  the  preacher  begun  when  the  divine 
presence  was  felt.     "  Never,''  adds  his  fellow- 


46 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


traveler,  "  did  I  see  such  weeping  in  any  con- 
gregation." 

We  read  of  an  extensive  awakening  at 
Moulin  in  1800,  at  Arran  in  1813,  at  Skye 
in  1814  and  at  Lewes  in  1834.  Under  these 
gracious  outpourings  many  a  barren  spot  be- 
came fruitful,  many  a  sorrowing  heart  was 
made  glad  and  many  a  wilderness  home  blos- 
somed as  the  rose. 

In  1839,  while  Rev.  W.  C.  Burns,  after- 
ward the  famous  Chinese  missionary,  was 
preaching  the  gospel  at  Kilsyth,  the  Spirit 
of  God  was  poured  out  on  the  people.  ''  They 
were,"  says  one,  *^  overwhelmed  with  a  flood 
of  commingled  sorrow  and  joy,  so  that  fre- 
quently the  voice  of  the  preacher  was  drowned 
in  the  sobs  and  cries  of  the  penitents."  The 
power  of  the  Lord's  Spirit  became  so  mighty 
upon  their  souls  as  to  carry  all  before  it,  like 
tlie  rushing  mighty  wind  of  Pentecost.  The 
movement  soon  spvead  to  Dundee,  where  a  glo- 
rious work  was  accomplished  chiefly  through 


REVIVALS  IN  SCOTLAND. 


47 


the  iDstru  mentality  of  Rev.  R.  M.  McCheyne,  of 
blessed  memory.  There  is  much  in  the  biog- 
raphy of  this  eminent  minister  of  Christ  from 
which  every  Christian  worker,  and  especially 
every  gospel  preacher,  may  learn  useful  les- 
sons. His  was  a  strong  intellect  and  a  loving 
heart,  but,  more  than  all,  a  soul  living  in  clos- 
est communion  with  God.  Herein  lay  his 
wonderful  power.  And  so  still :  real,  effective 
power  lies  not  so  much  in  what  a  man  says  as 
in  what  a  man  is.  There  is  no  rhetoric  so 
persuasive,  no  logic  so  powerful,  as  the  earn- 
estness of  a  man  who  lives  near  to  God.  We 
i  ant  eloquent  sermons,  but  the  sentences  that 
are  most  brilliant,  that  please  the  ear  and  charm 
the  fancy,  may  be  as  hard  as  diamonds  and  as 
cold  as  icicles.  The  sermons  that  fall  upon 
men's  hearts  as  the  good  seed  of  the  kingdom, 
that  germinate  and  bring  forth  fruit,  are  not 
always  great  intellectually ;  but  they  are  ser- 
mons that  have  been  "  steeped  in  prayer,  and 
that  are  preached  to  those  whose  spirits  have 
been  mellowed  by  prayer." 


r 


48 


OUTPOURINGS  OF   THE   SPIRIT. 


"When  one  who  holds  communion  with  the  skies 
Has  filled  his  urn  where  those  pure  waters  rise, 
And  once  more  mingles  with  us  meaner  things, 
'Tis  e'en  as  if  an  angel  shook  his  wings ; 
Immortal  fragrance  fills  the  circuit  wide, 
That  tells  us  whence  these  treasures  are  supplied." 

But  we  must  return  to  the  Dundee  revival. 
It  began  under  the  ministry  of  W.  C.  Burns 
while  McCheyne  was  absent  from  home  on  a 
mission  to  the  Jews  in  Palestine.  McCheyne 
tells  us  that  on  his  return  he  found  no  less 
than  thirty-nine  prayer-meetings  held  weekly 
in  connection  with  his  congregation  ;  "  five  of 
these  were  conducted  and  attended  entirelv 
by  children."  Within  three  months  not  fewer 
than  from  six  hundred  to  seven  hundred  came 
to  converse  with  him  about  their  souls,  and 
this  by  no  means  included  all  who  were  deeply 
concerned.  "  I  have  observed  at  times/'  says 
McCheyne,  "  an  awful  and  breathless  stillness 
pervading  the  assem.bly,  each  hearer  bent  for- 
ward in  the  posture  of  rapt  attention.  ,  .  . 
Again  at  times  I  have  heard  a  half-suppressed 
sigh  rising  from  many  a  heart,  and  have  seen 


REVIVALS  IN   SCOTLAND. 


49 


many  bathed  in  tears.  At  other  times  I  have 
heard  loud  sobbing  in  many  parts  of  the 
church,  while  an  awfully  soleLin  sense  of 
the  divine  presence  pervaded  the  whole 
audience.  ...  I  have  seen  persons  so  over- 
come that  they  could  not  walk  or  stand 
alone.  I  have  known  cases  in  which  be- 
lievers have  been  similarly  aflFected  through 
the  fullness  of  their  joy."  I  am  sure  my 
readers  will  excuse  me  for  giving  a  few 
more  words  from  this,  one  of  the  most 
saintly  and  Christ-like  ministers  tliat  ever 
blessed  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Scot- 
land or  of  any  other  land.  Speaking  of 
the  immediate  and  outward  results  of  this 
revival,  he  says  :  *^  The  effects  upon  the  com- 
munity are  very  marked.  It  seems  now  to 
be  allowed,  even  by  the  most  ungodly,  that 
there  is  such  a  thing  as  conversion.  Men 
cannot  any  longer  deny  it.  The  Sabbath 
is  now  observed  with  greater  reverence  than 
it  used  to  be,  and  there  seems  to  be  far  more 
of  a  solemn  awe  upon  the  minds  of  men  than 


60 


OUTPOURINGS   OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


formerly.  I  feel  that  I  can  now  stop  sinners 
in  the  midst  of  their  open  sin  and  wickedness, 
and  command  their  reverent  attention  in  a 
way  that  I  could  not  have  done  before  The 
private  meetings  for  prayer  have  ad  a 
sweet  influence  over  the  place.  There  is  far 
more  solemnity  in  the  house  of  God,  and  it 
is  a  different  thing  to  preach  to  the  people 
now  from  what  it  once  was.''  Farther  on  he 
adds :  "  I  do  entirely  and  solemnly  approve 
of  such  meetings,  because  I  believe  them  to 
be  in  accordance  with  the  word  of  God,  to  be 
pervaded  by  the  Spirit  of  Christ  and  to  be 
ofttimes  the  birthplace  of  precious  never-dy- 
ing souls.'' 

In  1859  tidings  of  the  work  of  grace  in 
America  and  in  Ireland  stirred  the  hearts  of 
Scottish  Christians,  and  in  many  places  there 
were  gracious  awakenings.  These  awaken- 
ings were  called  the  "Laymen's  Revival," 
from  the  fact  that  at  this  time  the  divine 
Head  of  the  Church,  as  if  to  assert  his  own 
sovereignty  find  the  power  of  divine  grace  in 


REVIVALS   IN  SCOTLAND. 


51 


the  salvation  of  meo,  was  pleased  to  raise  up 
an  extraordinary  number  of  eminent  laymen 
to  preach  the  gospel.  Among  these  honored 
laymen  the  following  may  be  mentioned : 
Brown  low  North,  Reginald  Eadcliffe,  H.  M. 
Grant,  Duncan  Matheson,  James  Turner,  Rob- 
ert Annan  and  Robert  Cunningham.  The  re- 
vival was  indeed  led  and  sustained  by  bands 
of  earnest  ministers  of  various  denominations, 
but  the  laymen  named  and  many  others  were 
extra  harvest-hands  called  to  the  work  on 
this  remarkable  occasion,  and  many  were  the 
sheaves  gathered  in.  We  cannot  go  into  par- 
ticulars, but  in  many  parts  of  Scotland  con- 
gregations and  communities  rejoiced  that  the 
winter  was  gone  and  the  time  for  the  singing 
of  birds  had  come.  A  single  illustration  must 
suffice.  Duncan  Matheson  thus  writes  of  one 
place  :  "  At  eight  o'clock  Mr.  Campbell  and  I 
preached  to  thousands  in  the  open  air.  What 
a  night !  We  had  over  and  over  to  preach. 
The  crowds  had  to  be  divided,  for  they  were 
too  large.     We  could  not  till  nearly  eleven 


52 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE   SPIRIT. 


:^ill 


o'clock  get  away  from  the  awakened.  Pray 
for  us.  The  Lord  is  doing  great  things.  I 
believe  almost  every  time  one  speaks  souls  are 
brought  to  Christ." 

An  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  at  this  time 
reached  the  fishermen  of  Scotland,  a  class 
usually  found  to  be  painfully  proof  against 
the  operations  of  the  ordinary  means  of  grace. 
Out  of  the  crews  of  two  boats  numbering  fifty 
men,  forty-two  were  conv^erted  to  Christ,  and 
on  many  a  fishing-boat  earnest  prayers  were 
offered,  and  the  sweet  melodies  of  David's 
psalms  might  often  be  heard  mingling  with 
the  still  more  ancient  harmonies  of  the  great 
ocean. 

Rev.  J.  Macpherson  says  of  this  revival : 
"Many  thousands  were  added  to  the  Lord. 
Of  these  a  large  proportion  consisted  of  young 
men,  not  a  few  of  whom  are  now  ministers  at 
home  or  missionaries  abroad.  In  fact,  there  is 
scarcely  a  church  in  which  you  do  not  find 
some  of  them  in  honorable  posts  of  office  or 
useful  spheres  of  work.     Nor  is  there  a  for- 


n 


REVIVALS  IN  SCOTLAND. 


53 


eign  mission  in  connection  with  which  some 
of  thera  are  not  laboring.  Out  of  that  move- 
ment there  sprang,  too,  a  host  of  Sabbath- 
school  teachers,  district  visitors  and  other 
Christian  workers.  The  impulse  given  to 
family   religion   was   a  striking  feature.'^ 

The  last,  and  perhaps  the  greatest,  revi- 
val of  religion  that  has  blessed  the  Scottish 
churches  since  the  days  of  John  Knox  was 
that  under  the  now  world-renowed  American 
evangelists.  Moody  and  Sankey,  in  the  latter 
part  of  1873  and  the  beginning  of  1874. 
Space  forbids  going  into  detail.  The  record 
of  the  work  is  a  history  of  one  long-continued 
miracle  of  grace.  Drs.  Blaikie,  Bonar,  Brown, 
Duff,  Thompson,  A.  Moody  Stuart,  Prof.  Cal- 
derwood  and  a  large  number  of  the  most  emi- 
nent ministers  and  professors  in  Scotland  joined 
hands  with  the  evangelists,  prayed  for  their 
work  and  rejoiced  in  their  prosperity.  No 
building  could  contain  the  multitudes  that 
came  to  hear  Moody  preach  the  gospel  and 
Sankey  sing  the  gospel.      At  an  open-air 


1 


64 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


meeting  in  Glasgow  the  policemen  on  the 
ground  estimated  the  number  present  at  not 
less  than  fifty  thousand  persons.  In  a  place 
with  a  population  of  not  more  than  twenty- 
five  hundred  as  many  as  fourteen  hundred 
persons  would  come  together  for  prayer. 
Rev.  C.  H.  Spurgeon  says  of  this  work: 
^^The  gracious  visitation  which  has  come 
upon  Edinburgh  is  such  as  was  probably 
never  known  before  within  the  memory  of 
man.  The  whole  place  seems  to  be  moved 
from  end  to  end.  When  we  hear  of  many 
thousands  coming  together  on  week-days  to 
quite  ordinary  meetings,  and  crying,  *  What 
must  we  do  to  be  saved?'  there  is,  we  are 
persuaded,  the  hand  of  God  in  the  matter.'' 
Speaking  of  the  work.  Dr.  Bonar  says :  "  In 
all  my  life  I  never  preached  to  such  an  audi- 
ence. The  vast  multitude  bowed  under  the 
simple  preaching  of  the  gospel,  and  without 
any  excitement  were  melted  into  tears  of  peni- 
tence and  the  children  of  God  to  tears  of  joy. 
.  .  .  The  presence  of  God  pervaded  the  very 


REVIVALS   IN  SCOTLAND. 


55 


air  and  was  felt  everywhere."  Upward  of 
three  thousand  persons  were  added  to  the 
various  churches  of  Edinburgh  alone  as  the 
result  of  this  great  awakening,  and  the  work 
was  endorsed  as  a  great  work  of  God  by  the 
most  eminent  clergymen  and  Christian  work- 
ers in  the  land.  I  now  leave  it  for  the  read- 
ers to  say  whether  or  not  Presbyterians  be- 
lieve in  revivals.  Oh  for  the  fire  from 
heaven! 


CHAPTER  V. 

REVIVALS  IN  IRELAND. 

THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  ULSTER — EARLY  RE- 
VIVALS— UNITARIANISM  AND  ITS  BLIGHT- 
ING EFFECTS — THE  YEAR  OF  GRACE  (1859) 
— THE  BISHOP  OF  DOWN — CHURCH  UNION 
— "STRIKINGS/^  "seizures,"  "PROSTRA- 
TIONS " — SOME  WORSE  THINGS  THAN  PHYS- 
ICAL EXCITEMENT — THE  MOODY  AND  SAN- 
KEY  REVIVAL. 

If  religious  revivals  have  not  been  so 
frequent  in  Ireland  as  in  England  and 
Scotland,  they  have  undoubtedly  been  more 
fervent.  What  is  lost  in  extension  is  gained 
in  intension.  In  Ireland,  very  emphatically, 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  has  suffered  violence 
and  men  of  violence  have  taken  it  by  force. 
Protestantism  in  Ireland  dates  from  the  Plan- 

66 


REVIVALS   IN   IRELAND. 


57 


tation  of  Ulster  about  the  beginning  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  At  this  time  many  Pres- 
byterians in  Scotland  fled  from  persecution  iu 
their  native  land  and  settled  in  the  province 
of  Ulster.  In  1615,  the  first  Protestant  Con- 
fession of  Faith  was  drawn  up  by  James 
Ussher.  It  was  not,  however,  till  1626  that  the 
beginning  of  the  Presbyterian  system  was  laid 
by  Hugh  Campbell.  Blair,  Livingstone  and 
other  men  of  good  parts  represented  the  Pres- 
byterian cause  about  this  time.  Under  their 
preaching  a  very  powerful  revival  of  religion 
occurred  about  the  year  1628,  and  continued 
for  some  years  thereafter.  This  revival  Flem- 
ing describes  as  "  a  bright,  hot  sun-blink  of 
the  gospel,"  and  as  "  one  of  the  largest  mani- 
festations of  the  Spirit  and  of  the  solemn 
times  of  the  downpouring  thereof  that  al- 
most since  the  days  of  the  apostles  hath  been 
seen."  As  to  the  effects  of  it  upon  the  char- 
acter of  the  people,  Livingstone,  after  describ- 
ing the  conversion  of  a  very  bold  and  wicked 
man,  says,  "But  why  do  I  speak  of  him? 


58 


OUTPOUKIKGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


;  '  ! 


We  knew,  aud  yet  know,  multitudes  of  such 
men  who  sinned,  and  still  gloried  in  it,  be- 
cause they  feared  no  man,  yet  are  now  pat- 
terns of  sobriety,  fearing  sin  because  they  fear 
God.'^  The  goodly  vine  that  was  planted  at 
this  time  struck  its  roots  deep  into  the  soil 
and  spread  its  branches  over  the  whole  prov- 
ince of  Ulster,  and,  watched  over  by  the  hf  av- 
enly  Husbandman,  it  is  still  bringing  forth 
good  fruit.  How  is  it  that  the  people  of  Uls- 
ter are  to-day  educated  and  industrious,  hap- 
py and  prosperous,  while  the  rest  of  Ireland 
is  poverty-stricken  and  distracted  with  lawless 
violence  ?  Any  answer  to  this  question  will 
be  exceedingly  defective  that  does  not  point 
us  to  the  powerful  awakening  during  the  firsi 
half  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

But  trying  times  were  in  store  for  Presby- 
ter ianism  in  Ulster.  Especially  did  it,  in  the 
course  of  time,  suffer  grievously  from  the  with- 
ering bliglit  of  Uuitarianism,  which  though, 
perhaps,  the  best  heathenism,  is  the  pooi  st 
Christianity  the  world  has  ever  seen.     And 


REVIVALS   IN   IRELAND. 


59 


although  Unitarianisni  was,  after  many  a  hard 
battle,  driven  from  the  field,  a  general  indif- 
ference and  deadness  reigned  throughout  the 
whole  province.  The  outward  form  of  relig- 
ion was  there,  but  the  inner  life  was  gone. 
Church  organization  was  complete,  but  of 
spiritual  power  there  was  none.  A  corpse 
is  as  well  organized  as  a  living  body. 

Many  ministers  and  earnest  Christians  felt 
this  pf'  :tual  death  and  mourned  over  it,  and 
the  burden  of  many  an  earnest  pr*yer  was, 
^*  O  Lord,  revive  thy  work.*'  Their  prayers 
were  answered  in  the  great  awakening  of  1859. 
This  was  Anniis  Mirabilis,  a  year  of  wonders 
in  Ulster.  During  the  preceding  year  news 
of  the  extraordinary  display  of  divine  grace 
with  which  the  American  churches  had  just 
been  visited  was  borne  across  the  Atlantic 
and  widely  circulated  through  the  country. 
That  year  the  General  Assembly  devoted  a 
portion  of  its  sittings  to  special  conference 
and  prayer  with  reference  to  this  great  spirit- 
ual movement.     These  conferences  were  sea- 


60 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


sons  of  peculiar  spiritual  solemnity  and  sacred- 
uess;  and  "when  one  after  another  of  the 
fathers  rose  up  in  his  place  to  tender  his  pa- 
ternal counsels,  and  when  the  voice  of  praise 
and  supplication  ascended  afterward  to  heav- 
en, all  hearts  were  touched  as  by  a  common 
sympathy,  while  from  the  reigning  harmony 
and  fervor  many  fondly  cherished  the  expec- 
tation of  a  time  of  more  abundant  blessing.'^ 
The  blessing  came,  but  far  beyond  their  expec- 
tations. It  was  indeed  a  "cloud-burst"  of 
grace.  Within  one  year  eleven  thousand  were 
added  to  thc^  Presbyterian  Church  alone.  The 
Episcopal  Church  also  largely  shared  in  this 
wonderful  work.  Mr.  Brownlow  North,  a 
member  of  that  Church  and  an  eminent  evan- 
gelist, visited  the  country,  was  publicly  ac- 
knowledged by  the  Presbyterian  Assembly  as 
an  eminent  servant  of  Christ,  and  preached 
in  Piesbyterian  pulpits,  as  well  as  in  those 
of  his  own  Church,  with  the  happiest  results. 
"  When  Christian  love  is  at  a  low  ebb,''  says 
the  late  Dr.  James  Hamilton,  "  the  differeut 


KEVIVALS   IN  IRELAND. 


61 


sects  stand  apart,  like  shrimps  iu  the  pools 
on  the  sea-coast  when  the  tide  is  low.  Each 
company  of  shrimps  lives  in  its  own  little 
pool,  knowing  or  caring  nothing  about  those 
in  the  other  pools ;  but  when  the  tide  rises 
and  overflows  the  little  pools,  they  are  all 
brought  into  the  same  great  ocean  and  form 
one  family.  Thus,  when  Christian  love  is 
strong  it  overflows  all  minor  differences ;  it 
overcomes  previous  barriers,  and  all  who  love 
the  Lord  feel  that  they  are  brethren.'^  So  it 
was  during  the  *'  year  of  grace  "  with  the  dif- 
ferent branches  of  Christ's  Church  in  Ulster. 
And  a  powerful  revival  of  religion  would  do 
more  toward  effecting  a  real  union  of  the 
different  branches  of  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  in  any  country  or  place  than  any 
number  of  deputations,  committees  or  reso- 
lutions can  ever  accomplish. 

The  bishop  of  Down,  Connor  and  Dromore 
bears  the  most  gratifying  testimony  to  tlie 
spiritual  blessings  of  the  revival,  such  as  the 
careless  aroused,  the  impure  made  pure,  the 


62 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


drunkard  reformed,  the  prayerless  prayerful 
and  every  means  of  grace  eagerly  attended. 
From  the  queries  addressed  by  His  Lordship 
to  the  clergy  of  his  diocese  on  the  subject 
of  this  revival,  I  submit  the  following  two, 
along  with  a  number  of  answers  from  the 
clergy: 

Q.  I. — "How  has  the  revival  operated  in 
reference  to  your  congregation — the  attend- 
ance at  the  Lord^s  Table  or  at  your  school- 
house  or  cottage  lectures?" 

A.  1. — "  I  formerly  had  about  twenty  at  a 
cottage  lecture;  for  the  last  ten  weeks  there 
has  been  an  average  of  about  seven  hundred 
every  Thursday  evening  at  an  open-air  serv- 


ice. 


yy 


A.  2. — "  Hundreds  leave  my  church  unable 
to  get  in.  Communion  three  times  the  former 
average."  -'-■^-^-^^ '•■-  -^:.. /%t\- 

A.  3. — "  The  effect  of  the  attendance  on 
every  means  of  grace  has  been  almost  mirac- 
ulous. The  Sunday-morning  service  is  more 
than  double;  the  evening  service  has  been 


REVIVALS  IN   IRELAND. 


63 


increased  sixfold,  and  the  communion  quad- 
rupled." 

A.  4. — "Congregation  increa  .J.  School- 
house  lecture  overflowing.  A  most  solemn 
feeling  and  deeply-seated  earnestness  charac- 
terizing all." 

Q.  II. — "Since  the  appearance  of  the  re- 
vival have  you  observed  any  improvement  in 
the  habits  of  your  people?" 

A.  1. — "  Decidedly  less  drunkenness,  less 
violation  of  the  sanctity  of  the  Lord's  Day." 

A.  2. — "A  most  marked  improvement. 
Drunkenness  and  other  notorious  vices  have 
almost  disappeared.  In  one  large  establish- 
ment the  business  of  each  day  is  commenced 
and  ended  with  prayer." 

A.  3. — "A  total  change  for  the  better; 
the  police  have  confessed  that  they  have 
little  to  do."  >,        - 

A.  4. — "It  is  most  gratifying  to  observe 
the  habit  of  reading  the  Bible  among  families 
where  it  was  before  totally  neglected — now 
become  so  prominent."  *. 


64 


OUTPOURINGS   OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


'^li  ii 


ii; 


A.  5. — "A  reverence  for  religious  subjects 
and  a  willingness  to  converse  upon  them." 

A.  6. — "The  habits  of  the  people  com- 
pletely changed.  Formerly,  drunkenness  was 
the  prevailing  habit;  now,  sobriety.  There 
had  been  a  total  neglect  of  family  worship ; 
it  is  now  very  general." 

A.  7. — "  In  almost  every  house  and  by  the 
hedges  I  find  the  Bible  read." 

A.  8. — "  Religion  is  the  universal  topic  of 
conversation."    ;d 

A.  9. — "  The  general  aspect  of  the  place  is 
changed." 

Here  is  another  striking  testimony  to  the 
good  results  of  this  revival.  The  speaker  is 
the  judge  addressing  the  grand  jury  of  the 
Coleraine  county  court.  After  observing  that 
there  was  but  one  case  on  the  calendar  before 
him,  and  that  an  unimportant  one,  and  after 
contrasting  this  happy  state  of  affairs  with 
his  former  experiences,  when  "calendars  were 
filled  with  charges  for  different  nefarious  prac- 
tices," he  asks,  "How  is  such  a  gratifying 


REVIVALS   IN   IRELAND. 


65 


state  of  things  to  be  accounted  for  ?  It  must 
be  from  the  improved  state  of  the  morality  of 
the  people.  I  believe  I  am  fully  warranted 
now  to  say  that  to  nothing  else  than  the  mwal 
and  religious  movement  which  commenced  early 
last  summer  can  the  change  be  attributed.  I 
can  trace  the  state  of  your  calendar  to  nothing 
else." 

The  origin  of  this  revival  is  sometimes 
traced  to  a  prayer-meeting  composed  of  four 
young  men  who  met  in  an  old  school-house 
near  Kells.  But  its  more  remote  source  is 
probably  a  Sabbath-school  teachers'  prayer- 
meeting  at  Tannybrake.  It  was  held  at  the 
close  of  the  Sabbath-school.  Parents  were 
especially  invited.  And  the  one  great  and 
absorbing  topic  was  salvation  through  faith 
in  Christ.  The  beginning  of  a  revival  is 
always  hard,  perhaps  impossible,  to  fix.  We 
can  see  only  a  little  way  back,  and  that  which 
we  regard  as  a  cause  is  itself  only  the  effect 
of  some  previous  cause.  Whatever  the  hu- 
man agency  employed,  we  must  never  forget 
6 


11 


II 


iws%9 


66 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


to  give  all  the  glory  to  the  great  First  Cause. 
He  alone  can  awaken  the  slumbering  and 
quicken   the  dead. 

Reproach  has  been  cast  upon  this  revival 
because  of  the  intense  physical  excitements 
that  in  some  places  characterized  it.  Not 
that  this  element  was  absent  from  previous 
revivals  in  Ireland,  England,  Scotland  or 
America;  but  it  was  far  more  intense  and 
violent  on  the  present  occasion  than  in 
any  other  awakening  yet  mentioned.  These 
"  physical  agitations,'^  "  strikings,"  "  seiz- 
ures/' "  prostrations,"  or  whatever  they  may 
be  called,  have  been  variously  accounted  for. 
Some  think  they  have  sufficiently  explained 
them  by  referring  them  to  temperament,  sym- 
pathy, hysteria,  etc.,  but  even  admitting  that 
they  may  be  so  referred,  it  is  still  open  to  in- 
quire if  this  in  the  least  removes  these  phe- 
nomena from  under  the  divine  superintend- 
ence and  control.  Does  not  the  Moral  Gov- 
ernor rule  by  law  in  everything?     Granting, 


REVIVAI^   IN   IRELAND. 


67 


therefore,  that  these  excitements  may  be  e.v- 
plained  on  some  purely  physical  theory,  ma/ 
they  still  not  have  a  most  important  and  spir- 
itual mission?  Some,  again,  have  regarded 
them  as  the  work  of  Satan  and  designed  to 
frustrate  the  work  of  grace.  And  undoubt- 
edly, when  God  is  doing  a  glorious  work,  Sa- 
tan will  rage  and  to  his  utmost  intrude,  and 
by  intermingling  his  work  darken  and  hinder 
as  much  as  possible  God's  work.  But  we  are 
not  left  without  a  sure  test  to  determine  what 
is  a  work  of  God  and  what  a  work  of  the 
devil.  Satan  does  not  cast  out  Satan.  And 
when  we  see  a  great  reformation  take  place 
in  a  communHy ;  when  we  see  multitudes  of 
men  suddenly  turned  from  their  intemperance. 
Sabbath-breaking,  profanity,  uncleanness  and 
worldliness ;  when  we  see  error,  sin,  and  sel- 
fishness giving  way  to  truth,  holiness  and  love, 
— we  say,  unhesitatingly,  this  is  not  the  work 
of  Satan,  but  a  great  and  glorious  work  of 
God.  And  we  will  hold  our  conviction  none 
the  less  firmly  because  the  change  has  been 


^^■' 

V 

1 

; 

1 

i 

Ji 

'<■] 

y\\ 

T 

I       ), 

1     1' 

!•: 

j: 

6i 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


brought  about  not  in  ways  of  our  choosing  or 
devising. 

Many  eminent  theologians,  such  as  Dr. 
Gibson  and  President  Edwards,  regard  these 
physical  phenomena  as  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  through  various  agencies,  and  gracious- 
ly designed  to  glorify  God  by  making  a  direct 
appeal  to  the  senses  of  the  unbelieving  and 
the  careless.  It  is  well  known  that  in  Ire- 
land infidels  and  scoffers  who  came  to  see  and 
ridicule  the  work  were  frequently  stricken 
down,  and  thus  convicted  and  converted  and 
made  monuments  to  the  power  of  the  Spirit 
of  God.  It  is  not,  however,  the  purpose  of 
these  articles  to  promulgate  any  special  theory 
of  revivals.  Our  object  will  be  attained  if  we 
succeed  only  in  imparting  useful  information, 
removing  unseemly  prejudices  and  awakening 
a  more  widespread  and  earnest  cry  for  a  work 
o^  grace  throughout  our  land.  We  are  will- 
ing to  leave  the  Holy  One  of  Israel  to  do  his 
work  in  his  own  way.  May  the  Spirit  de- 
scend upon  us  as  the  geutle  dew,  silently  im- 


REVIVAT^   IN   IRELAND. 


69 


parting  life,  growth,  and  beauty ;  but  if  God 
so  will  it,  let  him  come  with  the  thunder  ana 
the  lightning  and  the  storm.  It  is  a  good 
thing  if  under  any  circumstances  men  are 
awakened  from  the  slumber  of  death  and 
brought  to  rejoice  in  a  new  life.  Better, 
sure,  to  breast  the  roaring  surge  on  the  live 
ocean  and  speed  on  before  the  favoring  gale, 
than  lie  becalmed  and  motionless  amid  the 
stagnation  and  putridity  of  the  waveless  sea 
of  death.  Give  us  the  roar  of  the  raging 
cataract  rather  than  the  deadly  miasma  of 
the  stagnant,   putrid  pool. 

We  cannot  here  dwell  upon  the  Moody 
and  Sankey  revival  in  Ireland  in  1874. 
This  awakening  was  in  many  respects  a 
striking  contrast  to  that  of  1859,  and  sim- 
ilar to  that  by  the  same  men  in  Scotland,  al- 
ready noticed.  No  wild  excitements,  but  quiet- 
ness, order  and  profound  solemnity  prevailed. 
The  size  of  the  meetings  was  determined  by 
that  of  the  largest  buildings  in  Belfast,  Lon- 
donderry and  Dublin.     Over  eight  hundred 


J 


70 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


ministers  of  all  the  evangelical  denominations 
took  part  in  the  work.  At  some  of  the  meet- 
ings there  were  as  many  as  seven  hundred  and 
fifty  inquii*ers ;  and  at  one  meeting  two  thou- 
sand persons  professed  to  have  given  their 
hearts  to  Christ  during  the  preceding  six 
months.  Thus  Zion  put  on  her  robes  of 
salvation  and  converts  to  Jesus  were  multi- 
plied as  the  drops  of  the  morning  dew. 


*/i 


CHAPTER  VI. 

REVIVALS  IN  AMERirA, 

THE  "great  awakening"  OF  1729-35 — 

JONATHAN  EDWARDS  AND  HIS  CO-WORK- 
ERS— "  THE  REVIVAL  OF  1800  "  AND  SOME 
OF  THE  GLORIOUS  RESULTS — VARIOUS  TES- 
TIMONIES, INCLUDING  THAT  OF  THE  PRES- 
BYTERIAN GENERAL  ASSEMBLY — THE  FUL- 
TON STREET  PRAYER-MEETING.    ^       ., 

"  Oh,  sirs,"  said  a  wise  and  good  man  on 
his  deathbed,  "I  dread  mightily  that  a  ra- 
tional sort  of  religion  is  coming  among  us.  I 
mean  by  this  a  religion  that  consists  in  a  bare 
attendance  on  outward  duties  and  ordinances, 
without  the  power  of  godliness."  Such  was 
the  state  of  religion  throughout  the  American 
colonies  at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 

century.     Church    machinery,   indeed,   there 

71 


72 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


was  in  abiindaDce,  but  the  power  of  goJli- 
ness  was  sadly  wanting.  As  the  author  of 
The  Tongue  of  Fire  would  say,  the  cannon 
was  there  and  the  ball  and  the  powder,  but 
each  was  powerless  in  itself,  and  all  put  to- 
gether were  powerless,  for  the  fire  was  not 
there.  Jonathan  Edwards  says :  *^  It  was  a 
time  of  extraordinary  dullness  in  religion." 
A  sort  of  moral  chloroform  had  put  the 
Church  to  sleep.  The  old  people  thought 
only  of  their  work,  the  young  only  of  their 
play.  Sin  abounded.  God  was  forgotten. 
But  where  sin  abounded,  grace  did  much 
more  abound.  When  God  is  going  to  ac- 
complish a  glorious  word  he  usually  does  it 
upon  very  unpromising  material.  "I  fully 
believe,"  says  Spurgeon,  "that  the  darkest 
lime  of  any  Christian  Church  is  just  the 
period  when  it  ought  to  have  most  hope, 
for  when  the  Lord  has  allowed  us  to  spin 
ourselves  out  till  there  is  no  more  strength 
in  us,  then  it  is  that  he  will  come  to  our 
rescue."      This    is    in   accordance   with   the 


REVIVALS  IN  AMERICA. 


73 


promises.  It  is  not  the  field  where  there 
is  some  good  growth  already,  but  the  wil- 
derness where  nothing  grows  and  nothing 
is  to  be  seen  but  dry  sand  and  barren 
rocks,  that  is  converted  into  '*a  fruitful 
field."  It  is  not  the  good  soil,  but  "the 
dry  land,"  that  is  made  "springs  of  water." 
Hear  the  word  of  the  Lord :  "  I  will  give 
waters  in  the  wilderness  and  rivers  in  the 
desert,  to  give  drink  to  my  people,  my 
chosen."  Thus  the  power  and  freeness  of 
divine  grace  are  more  conspicuous,  and  God 
in  all  things  is  glorified. 

Such  was  the  experience  of  the  American 
churches  at  the  time  of  "  The  Great  Awak- 
ening" extending  from  1729-35.  The  dry 
bones  were  "  very  many  and  very  dry,"  but 
a  mighty  breath  of  the  Spirit  came  upon 
them,  imparting  to  them  life  and  beauty 
and  power,  and  they  stood  up  upon  their 
feet,  "an  exceeding  great  army."  The  en- 
emy came  in  like  a  flood  and  threatened  to 
overrun  and  sweep  away  all  that  was  precious, 


m 
ill 

|l' 

is ' 


74 


OUTPOURINGS   OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


'    ■; 


but  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  lifted  up  a  stand- 
ard for  the  people.  In  the  midst  of  the 
prevailing  irreligion,  apostasy  and  profligacy 
there  were  those  who  cried  day  and  night 
that  the  Lord  would  refresh  his  weary  her- 
itage. ■■-       '>-•-•       ^'---'':^^      '"^    -t  ■•■  '^  .:"'V;J:|.- 

*'If/'  says  the  prince  of  preachers,  quoted 
above,  "  there  be  only  two  or  three  whose 
Jiearts  break  over  the  desolations  of  the 
Church,  if  we  have  only  half  a  dozen  that 
resolve  to  give  the  Ijord  no  rest  till  he  estab- 
lish and  make  Jerusalem  a  praise  in  the  earth, 
we  shall  see  great  things  yet.  If  they  wiU 
have  souls  saved,  if  so  they  plead  and  ago- 
nize, oh,  then  the  Lord  will  turn  his  gracious 
hand  and  send  a  plenteous  stream  of  blessing 
upon  their  district."  Has  he  not  said,  "  When 
the  poor  and  the  needy  seek  water,  and  there 
is  none,  and  their  tongue  faileth  them  for  thirst, 
I  the  Lord  will  hear  them.  I  the  God  of  Is- 
rael will  not  forsake  them  ;  I  will  open  rivers 
in  high  places  and  fountains  in  the  midst  of 
the  valleys.     I  will  make  the  wilderness  a 


REVIVALS  IN   AMERICA, 


75 


pool  of  water,  aud  the  dry  laud  springs  of 
water''  ?    --.        >-<  ■--   ^  -:,-■:■■  .■. 

Jonathan  Edwards,  Whitefield,  Noyes,  Wil- 
liam and  Gilbert  Tennent,  David  Brainerd  and 
Samuel  Davies  were  the  foremost  among  those 
raised  up  at  this  time  to  arouse  a  slumbering 
Church  and  awaken  a  dead  world.  The  re- 
vival extended  over  the  whole  of  the  New 
England  colonies,  and  it  was  reckoned  that 
during  its  continuance  upward  of  one  hun- 
dred thousand  souls  were  brought  to  Christ. 
Edwards  said  of  it :  "  It  is  evident  that  it  is  a 
very  great  and  wonderful  and  exceedingly  glo- 
rious work  of  God,  such  as  has  never  been 
seen  in  New  England,  and  scarcely  ever  has 
been  heard  of  in  any  land."  Describing  the 
awakening  in  his  own  town  of  Northampton, 
this  eminent  divine  says  :  "  There  was  scarce- 
ly a  single  person  in  the  town,  either  old  or 
young,  that  was  left  unconcerned  about  the 
great  things  of  the  eternal  world.  Those  that 
were  wont  to  be  the  vainest  and  loosest,  and 
those  that  had  been  most  disposed  to  think 


;  ( 


^iii 


f  » 


fl 


76 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


slightly  of  vital  and  experimental  religion, 
were  now  generally  subject  to  great  awak- 
enings. And  the  work  of  conversion  was 
carried  on  in  a  lost  astonishing  manner, 
and  increased  more  and  more;  souls  did,  as 
it  were,  come  by  flocks  to  Jesus  Christ.  .  .  . 
The  work  of  God,  as  it  was  carried  on  and 
the  number  of  true  saints  multiplied,  soon 
made  a  glorious  alteration  in  the  town. 
People  were  now  done  with  their  old  quar- 
rels, backbitings  and  intermeddling  with  other 
men's  matters ;  the  tavern  was  soon  left  empty. 
The  place  of  resort  was  now  changed ;  it  was 
no  longer  the  tavern,  but  the  minister's  house ; 
and  that  was  thronged  far  more  than  ever  the 
tavern  had  been  wont  to  be.  .  .  .  The  town 
seemed  to  be  full  of  the  presence  of  God ;  it 
never  was  so  full  of  love  nor  so  full  of  joy, 
and  yet  so  full  of  distress,  as  it  was  then. 
There  were  remarkable  tokens  of  God's  pres- 
ence in  almost  every  house.  It  was  a  time  of 
joy  in  families  on  account  of  salvation  being 
brought  to  them — parents  rejoicing  over  their 


■^ 


REVIVALS   IN   AMERICA. 


77 


children  as  new-born,  husbands  over  their 
wives,  and  wives  over  their  husbands.  The 
goings  of  God  were  then  seen  in  his  sanc- 
tuary ;  God's  day  was  a  delight  and  his  taber- 
nacles were  amiable.  Our  public  assemblies 
were  then  beautiful ;  the  congregation  was 
alive  in  God's  service,  every  one  earnestly 
intent  on  the  public  worship,  every  hearer 
eager  to  drink  in  the  words  of  the  minister 
as  they  came  from  his  mouth ;  the  assembly 
in  general  were,  from  time  to  time,  in  tears 
while  the  word  was  preached,  some  weeping 
with  sorrow  and  distress,  others  with  joy  and 
love,  others  with  pity  and  concern  for  the 
souls  of  their  neighbors.^'  '  '  '  "  ^ 
'^  A  little  more  than  half  a  century  from  this 
awakening  brings  us  to  what  is  known  as  the 
"Great  Revival  of  1800."  This  extended 
over  the  whole  of  the  United  States,  but  was 
most  powerfully  felt  in  the  region  extending 
from  the  Allegheny  Mountains  westward  to 
the  borders  of  civilization  and  in  the  South- 
ern States.     Great  meetings  were  held  in  the 


51 


Ml 


111  ■  *i 
1  ■ 


78 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


m 


«! 


open  air,  usually  in  the  forest  and  under  the 
green  foliage  of  the  trees.  In  Kentucky,  par- 
ticularly, was  the  mighty  power  of  God  felt. 
Here  the  revival  began  at  a  Presbyterian 
meeting  under  the  ministry  of  two  brothers 
called  McGee,  one  a  Presbyterian  minister 
and  the  other  a  Methodist.  Vast  multi- 
tudes attended  the  meetings,  many  coming 
from  ten  to  fifty  miles  to  witness  the  work. 
"The  people,''  says  one,  "fell  under  the 
preaching  like  corn  before  a  storm  of 
wind,"  and  many  were  converted.  The  be- 
ginning of  the  present  century  was  indeed 
a  time  of  refreshing  throughout  nearly  all 
Christian  lands.  There  was  a  general  shak- 
ing of  the  valley  of  dry  bones,  God  mani- 
fested himself  in  his  glory  in  building  up 
Zion.  Evangelical  religion  then  made  the 
grandest  advance  since  the  days  of  Martin 
Luther.  Then  originated  the  British  and 
American  Bible  Societies,  by  which  already 
millions  of  copies  of  the  word  of  God  have 
been  distributed  in  about  three  hundred  of  the 


REVIVALS   IN   AMERICA. 


79 


languages  and  dialects  of  the  earth.  Then 
also  commenced  nearly  all  the  modem  home 
and  foreign  missionary  efforts  of  the  evan- 
gelical churches,  being  a  direct  result  of  the 
gracious  refreshing.  And  we  confidently 
believe  that  the  good  work  then  begun 
will  go  on  and  on  until  the  universal  and 
final  effusion  of  the  Spirit  shall  restore  the 
whole  of  this  lost  world  to  God. 

To  write  the  history  of  this  great  revival 
in  America  would  be  to  write  the  religious 
history  of  nearly  every  State  and  city  and 
town  in  the  Union  for  a  number  of  years. 
The  well  known  Dr.  Gardiner  Spring  of 
New  York  thus  writes :  "  From  the  year 
1800  down  to  the  year  1825  there  was  an 
uninterrupted  series  of  these  celestial  visita- 
tions spreading  over  different  parts  of  the 
land.  During  the  whole  of  these  twenty- 
five  years  there  was  not  a  month  in  which 
we  could  not  point  to  some  village,  some  city, 
some  seminary  of  learning,  and  say,  ^  Behold 
what  God  hath  wrought!'" 


•  'li 


80 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


Dr.  Samuel  Ralston  says  of  it :  "  That  this 
is  a  gracious  work  of  the  Spirit  of  God  is 
apparent  to  me  from  the  effects  it  has  pro- 
duced. It  has  reclaimed  the  wicked  and  the 
profligate,  and  transformed  the  lion  into  a 
lamb.  It  has  brought  professed  deists  to 
become  professed  Christians,  and  turned  their 
cursings  into  blessings  and  their  blasphemies 
into  praises.  Its  good  effects  have  readied  all 
ranks,  ages,  sexes  and  colors — the  African  as 
well  as  the  European  and  American.  The 
combined  hordes  of  deists,  hypocrites  and 
formalists  are  generally  opposed  to  it.  Some 
also  have  fallen  away,  but  this  is  no  objec- 
tion, but  rather  an  evidence  that  it  is  the 
work  of  the  Spirit  of  God.^^  This  revival 
v/as,  in  thr  opinion  of  many,  one  of  the  most 
extraordinary  that  ever  visited  the  Church  of 
Christ.  "  Surely,"  said  Bishop  Asbury,  "  we 
may  say  our  Pentecost  is  fully  come  this  year.*' 
The  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  1803  bore  the  most  unqualified 
testimony  to  the  extent  and   power  of  the 


REVIVALS   IN  AMERICA. 


81 


work.  A  single  quotation  must  suffice : 
" There  is,'  it  says,  " scarcely  a  Presbytery 
under  the  care  of  the  Assembly  from  which 
some  pleasing  intelligence  has  not  been  an- 
nounced ;  and  from  some  of  these  communi- 
cations have  been  made  which  so  illustriously 
display  the  triumphs  of  evangelical  truth  and 
the  power  of  sovereign  grace  as  cannot  but 
fill  with  joy  the  hearts  of  all  who  love  to 
hear  of  the  prosperity  of  the  Redeemer's 
kingdom.'' 

Some  of  the  results  of  the  revival  of  1800 
I  have  already  indicated.  And  here  it  ought 
to  be  mentioned  that  most  of  the  theological 
schools  of  the  United  States  were  the  out- 
growth of  this  revival.  In  1810  the  General 
Assembly  decided  to  erect  a  seminary  *^to 
train  up  persons  for  the  ministry  who  shall 
be  lovers  as  well  as  defenders  of  the  truth  as 
it  is  in  Jesus — -friends  of  revivals  jj  religion 
and  a  blessing  to  the  Church  oi  God."  The 
institution  in  the  year  1812  was  located  at 
Princeton,  N.  J.,  and  many  of  the  most  de- 


W 


! 


w^ 


PHPRmnnvr 


82 


OUTPOURINGS   OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


Mir 


voted  Presbyterian  miiiisfcers  in  the  laud  have 
received  their  theological  training  there. 

Very  soon  afterward  many  other  seminaries 
sprung  up  in  other  parts  of  the  land  as  a  re- 
sult of  this  revived  interest  in  religion.  Among 
these  the  following  may  be  mentioned :  Au- 
Durn,  the  Western  Seminary,  Columbia,  Lane, 
Union  and  Danvdie.  Eternity  alone  can  tell 
the  good  accomplished  by  these  schools  of  the 
prophets  in  sending  out  preachers  of  the  glo- 
rious gospel  ^*  who  have  been  luvers  as  well  as 
defenders  of  the  truth  as  it  is  m  Jesus — friends 
of  revivals  of  religion  and  a  blessing  to  the 
Church  of  God.''  Space  forbids  us  dwelling 
at  length  upon  the  *^  Fulton  Street  Prayer- 
Meeting  Revival''  of  1857,  so  small  in  its 
beginning,  but  so  mighty  in  its  development. 
The  voice  of  prayer  and  praise  was  heard  in 
theatre  and  warehouse  and  blacksmith-shop 
and  factory,  and  the  noisy  cries  of  the  mart 
were  drowned  out  by  the  more  earnest  cries 
of  the  people,  "  Men  and  brethren,  what  shall 
we  do  ?" 


i 

is 


REVIVAIiS   IN   AMERICA, 


83 


I  close  this  chapter  with  the  words  of  Pres- 
ident Humphrey  of  Amherst  College  :  "After 
all  that  our  eyes  have  seen  and  our  ears  have 
heard  I  marvel  that  any  one  should  look  with 
suspicion  on  revivals.  Rather  M  us  hail 
them,  in  this  midnight  of  tribulation,  as  the 
harbinger  of  the  light  of  seven  days  "  (Isa. 
30:26). 


1: 


CHAPTEE  VII. 


REVIVALS  IN  CANADA. 


I 


V 


SOURCES  OF  INFORMATION — THE  AWAKEN- 
ING OF  1800  EXTENDED  INTO  CANADA — 
"  THE  REVIVAL  CONFERENCE  '' — PLAYTER 
THE  HISTORIAN — DR.  GREGG's  "HISTORY 
OF  PRESBYTERIANISM  in  CANADA  ^' — EAR- 
LY METHODIST  AND  PRESBYTERIAN  REVI- 
VALS— A  CAUTION — THE  OLD  COMMUNION 
SEASON  OF  THE  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH — 
RESULTS — PRESENT  DUTY. 

AcxJOUNTS  of  revivals  in  otLii  laiif's  have 
been  written  by  inspired  and  u^i^nsoin^d  men, 
but  the  narrative  of  revivals  in  CVnnda  lias 
not  jety  so  far  as  th  writer  is  ivvare.  en« 
gaged  thv^  pen  of  an}  Ir^jtorian.  The  Cana- 
dian churches  have^  however,  at  various  times 
enjoyed  gracious  \isifations,  the  accounts  of 

84 


REVIVALS   IN  CANADA. 


which,  apart  from  incidental  notices  by  the 
historians  Playter  and  Gregg,  must  be  gath- 
ered from  church  records,  from  the  ephemeral 
prints  of  the  day  and  from  the  grateful  mem- 
ories of  the  Lord's  people.  Though  such  sea- 
sons have  never  been  witnessed  in  Canada  as 
Whitefield  and  Wesley  saw  in  England,  Liv- 
ingstone in  Scotland,  Gibson  in  Irelarid  or 
Edwards  in  America,  the  Christians  in  Can- 
ada have  not  been  left  without  tokens  of 
the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and  many  congre- 
gations can  recall  seasons  when  the  divine 
power  was  wonderfully  manifested  in  the 
quickening  of  saints  and  in  the  conversion 
of  sinners. 

The  great  awakeiiing  of  1800  in  the  United 
States,  already  described,  extended  into  Can- 
ada, up  along  the  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  even 
to  the  head  of  the  lake,  to  Niagara,  and  thence 
to  Long  Point  on  the  north-western  shore  of 
Luke  Erie.  This  gracious  work  is  closely  as- 
sociated with  the  name  of  Rev.  Joseph  Jewell, 
a  Methodist  minister  who  traveled  throughout 


i 


86 


(      1! 


.    I 


•i' 


OUTt>OtJRrNGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


this  newly-settled  district,  preaching  in  log 
houses,  in   barns   and       .netirnes  in  groves, 
and   ev^     vv^  re   bjvjbs^p    the   power  and 
grace   o-'    ^^J.      AWj-t     his    same   time   a 
powerful    vv  rk  of   v^rarv    was  carried   on  in 
the  distr*  ^^  of  Niagai  <,  chiefly  through  the 
instrumentality  of  Rev.  Joseph   Sawyer. 
■    In   1805  was  convened  at  Elizabeth  town 
what  has  since  been  usually  known  among 
Methodists    as   "  the    Revival    Conference." 
"No    other    conference    in    Canada/'    says 
Playter   the   historian,  "is  like  it,   nor  any 
other    session    of   an    annual    conference    in 
Great   Britain   or   the    Ignited    States.     The 
awakening    and    am  verting    }H)wer   of    God 
has   apjH^ared    freipiently   at    these   sessions, 
Uit  at  none  of  which    there  is  any  record 
>\horo    the    divino    power    was    so    greatly 
ni;;nifestcHl  and  with  such  results/'     It  has 
been    reckon<\l    that    during    the    fixe    days 
th^   conference    was    lu    session    more    than 
oi>^   hundred    persons    were   awakened,   and 
the  total  increase  of  membership  from  this 


-iil 


REVIVALS   IN  CANADA. 


87 


blessed   revival   at   the  Elizabethtown  Con- 
ference was  about  fourteen  hundred. 

Again  I  quote  the  historian  already  named  : 
"  In  this  great  revival  the  labors  of  the  preach- 
ers, local  and  traveling,  were  very  great,  and 
some  wrought  for  God  beyond  their  strength. 
...  A  great  impression  was  made  on  the  pub- 
lic mind  by  the  strange,  sometimes  wonderful, 
change  of  cliaraeter  and  life  in  so  many  per- 
sons and  in  so  short  a  time.  The  young  had 
forsaken  their  frivolities,  and  were  now  seri- 
ous, fond  of  the  Bible  and  seeking  knowledge 
to  make  them  useful.  Those  indifferent  to 
religion,  lovers  of  pleasure,  and  not  lovers 
of  God,  were  now  zealous  for  the  truth  and 
lovers  of  the  Sabbath.  The  quarrelsome  had 
learned  in  meekness  and  love  to  bear  with  evil 
ones  and  to  forgive.  Many  drunkards  had 
substituted  a  resort  to  the  house  of  God  for 
the  tavern,  the  psalms  and  hymns  for  the 
songs  of  Bacchus,  and  cleanliness  and  sobri- 
ety for  rags  and  strong  drink.  Rude  com- 
panies and  neighborhoods  loved  the  devout 


m 


i  gn 


88 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


! 


assemblies  of  the  saints,  spent  their  Sabbaths 
in  tlie  house  of  God  and  became  orderly,  civil 
and  hospitable." 

Thus  the  Methodist  Church  in  Canada,  as 
in  England,  was  born  in  a  revival,  and  from 
the  commencement  to  the  present  day  she  has 
been  pre-eminently  a  revival  Church. 

Other  branches  of  the  evangelical  churches 
in  our  land  have  had  their  times  of  refresh- 
ing. At  present  we  shall  refer  only  to  those 
in  the  Presbyterian  Church.  The  readers  of 
Dr.  Gregg\s  History  of  Presbyter ioMism  in 
Canada^  pp.  534-551,  will  learn  how  largely 
early  Presbyterianism  was  blessed  with  sea- 
sons of  revival. 

As  early  as  1809,  Rev.  D.  W.  Eastman  of 
the  American  Presbyterian  Churcli  preached 
in  the  Niagara  peninsula.  For  about  twenty- 
five  years  he  labored  alone  in  a  wild  and  com- 
paratively uncultivated  field.  In  1830  two 
or  three  other  ministers  joined  him.  In  1833 
the  Niagara  Presbytery  was  formed,  and  from 
a  narrative  prepared  by  a  committee  of  that 


REVIVALS  IX  CANADA. 


89 


Presbytery,  and  embodied  in  Dr.  Gregg's 
HMory,  I  extract  the  following ;  "  From 
that  time  (1830)  to  the  present  God  has 
greatly  enlarged  our  Ziou.  This  he  lias 
done,  so  far  as  means  are  concerned,  chiefly 
by  protracted  meetings.  These  commenced 
in  the  churches  under  Mr.  Eastman's  care, 
and  they  have  been  held  in  many  places 
within  our  bounds  with  the  most  blessed 
results."  Of  these  meetings  in  the  church 
at  Gainsborough  the  Presbytery  says :  "  Truly 
it  was  a  time  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most 
High.  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  was  poured 
out  in  rich  effusions,  humbling  and  quicken- 
ing his  people,  filling  their  hearts  with  com- 
fort, and  converting  sinners  to  Christ.  Be- 
tween seventy  and  eighty,  we  believe,  were 
born  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  about  fifty 
of  whom  at  once  united  with  the  Church.'^ 
Special  mention  is  made  by  the  Presbytery 
of  revivals  about  this  time  in  the  churches 
at  South  Pelham,  Hamilton,  St.  Catharine's, 
Chippewa,  Drummoudville,  Brantford,  Era- 


90 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPTRIT. 


mosa  and  Esquesing.  It  is  iuteresting  to 
notice  that  at  this  early  date  so  much  at- 
tention was  given  to  the  religious  instruc- 
tion of  the  young  and  to  the  temperance 
cause.  In  the  Presbytery^s  narrative  it  is 
recorded  that  there  was  a  teni})erance  so- 
ciety in  connection  with  each  congregation, 
and  in  some  cases  we  are  informed  that 
every  member  of  the  church  was  also  a 
member  of  the  temperance  society.  Is  not 
a  revival  of  this  kind  greatly  needed  at  the 
present  day  ? 

Let  us  guard  against  a  dangerous  error. 
Many  hear  of  a  revival,  and  instantly  there 
are  associated  in  their  minds  a  series  of 
crowded  meetings,  fervid  preaching,  much 
emotional  singing,  many  manifest  conver- 
sions, many  anxious  inquirers  and  much 
religious  excitement.  But  let  us  beware. 
There  may  be  much  that  is  outward  and 
demonstrative,  and  yet  no  true  revival.  It 
is  no  evidence  that  a  man  has  wings  and 
can   fly  because  a  tornado  puts   its   suction 


REVIVALS  IN  CANADA. 


91 


upon  him,  lifts  him  up  and  hurls  him 
across  the  street;  and  it  is  no  evidence  that 
a  man  is  converted  because  a  tremendous 
physical  excitement  lifts  him  for  a  moment 
out  of  the  slough  of  his  bad  habits,  blows 
the  mud  oif  him  and  crazes  him,  so  that 
he  talks  aiid  screams  in  the  language  of 
virtuous  insanity.  Then,  on  tli(3  other  hand, 
there  may  be  a  true  revival  of  religion  where 
the  Spirit  of  God  comes  down  like  the  dew, 
gently,  silently,  imparting  life,  beauty,  vigor ; 
where  Gol  is  heard,  not  in  the  thunder  and 
the  storm,  but  in  the  still  small  voice ;  where 
the  convicted  take  each  step  deliberately,  per- 
ceiving it  to  be  a  duty,  and  the  converts  come 
into  the  Church  quietly  and  beautifully  as 
buds  and  blossoms  to  a  tree.  Wherever 
saints  are  being  quickened  and  sinners  con- 
verted and  an  impulse  given  to  the  cause  of 
true  religion  we  should  gratefully  recognize 
the  special  work  of  the  Spirit.  The  ideal 
state  of  a  Church  is  undoubtedly  when  each 
member    thereof    is   so    pervaded    with    the 


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OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


ill 


I 


Spirit  of  Christ,  so  "filled  with  all  the 
fullness  of  God/^  that  revival  in  the  pop- 
ular sense  would  be  impossible.  There  may 
be  no  "  floods  upon  the  dry  ground,"  but  if 
the  genial  showers  regularly  descend  and  the 
enlivening  sun  shed  his  beams,  there  will  be 
life  and  growth  and  beauty.  h-   . 

Were  not  the  eld  communion  seasons  in 
the  Presbyterian  Church  days  of  hallowed 
influences?  Who  that  has  enjoyed  them 
can  ever  forget  those  sweetly  solemn  sacra- 
mental occasions?  Then  the  Lord  made  a 
feast  of  fat  things,  and  the  King  sat  at  his 
table,  and  the  spikenard  sent  forth  the  smell 
thereof;  then  believers  sat  under  his  shadow 
and  found  his  fruit  sweet  to  their  taste.  He 
brought  them  to  his  banquoting-house,  and 
his  banner  over  them  was  love.  It  was  no 
unusual  thing  for  persons  to  come  thirty  or 
forty  miles  to  attend  "  the  communion."  And 
so  great  was  the  concourse  of  hearers  on  these 
occasions  that  it  was  frequently  found  neces- 


REVIVALS  IN  CANADA. 


93 


1 


sary  to  have  two  separate  assemblies,  one  in 
the  church  and  the  other  in  some  grove  near 
by.  The  season  lasted  five  days,  beginning 
with  Thursday.  There  were  two  or  three 
services  each  day,  and  in  a  large  and  scat- 
tered country  congregation  there  would  be 
each  evening  from  five  to  ten  prayer-meet- 
ings in  private  houses  in  differen*^^  parts  of 
the  congregation.  Presbyterianisra  has  al- 
ways been  distinguished  for  "decency  and 
order."  This  distinctive  characteristic  was 
observable  in  all  the  communion  services. 
Each  of  the  five  days  had  its  own  distinc- 
tive name,  indicating  the  general  character  of 
the  services  on  that  day.  This  was  especial- 
ly the  case  among  the  Gaelic  section  of  the 
Church.  I  will  give  these  distinctive  names 
in  both  tongues :  Thursday  was  called  the 
Day  of  Humiliation  or  Fast  Day  (La  Tras- 
gaidh) ;  Friday  was  the  day  of  Self-exam- 
ination {La  Rannsaichaidh) ;  Saturday  was 
the  Day  of  Preparation  (La  UUuchaidh) ; 
Sabbath   was   the  Day  of  Communion   {La 


I 


m 


11 


94 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


Comunnaidh) ;  and  Monday  was  the  Day  of 
Thanksgiving  (La  Taingealichd,)  =f^^  ^  ^  ^* 
The  various  religious  services  of  prayers, 
singing,  sermons,  exhortations,  and  the  per- 
sonal conversation  of  each  day  always  had 
respect  to  the  uniform  subject  of  that  day. 
Monday  was  the  last,  and  not  infrequently 
the  great,  day  of  the  feast.  Joy  commingled 
with  sorrow  filled  the  hearts  of  the  Lord^s 
people — joy  because  of  the  spiritual  and 
social  blessings  of  the  season,  but  profound 
sorrow  that  now  the  communion  was  at  its 
close  and  they  were  about  to  separate  and 
return  to  their  distant  homes,  many  of 
them  not  expecting  to  meet  again  for  an- 
other year — i.  e,  till  the  next  communion 
season.  "  When  shall  we  have  a  commun- 
ion without  a  Monday?"  was  an  expression 
on  the  lips  of  many,  and  meaning.  When 
shall  we  meet  to  part  no  more?  Most  of 
these  grand  old  saints  are  now  enjoying  their 
communion  without  a  Monday.  May  the 
sons  be  worthv  of  the  fathers !     The  com- 


REVIVALS  IN  CANADA. 


95 


munion  season  occurred  yearly,  and  was  a 
"time  of  refreshing''  to  Christians,  giving 
spiritual  tone  to  the  religious  life  during  the 
whole  year.  Under  the  ministry  of  Richard 
Baxter  there  were,  we  are  told,  long  streets  in 
the  town  of  Kidderminster  on  which  there 
was  not  one  house  that  had  not  its  hours  of 
prayer.  But  the  writer  knows  whole  dis- 
tricts of  Ontario  where  there  were  conces- 
sions many  miles  in  length  on  which  there 
were  few,  if  any,  houses  where  prayers  were 
not  offered  morning  and  evening  and  the 
sweet  melody  of  psalms  heard  slowly  and 
solemnly  ascending  to  the  God  of  heaven. 
The  blessed  results  are  to  be  seen  at  this 
day  in  the  sobriety,  industry  and  faith  of 
their  descendants.  One  such  congregation 
known  to  the  writer  has  given  upward  of 
forty  men  to  the  Christian  ministry,  and  has 
sent  forth  not  a  few  who  have  taken  the  very 
first  place  in  the  legal,  teaching  and  medical 
professions.  --  -  -^^  — - :-^-^-.:^.-^^^^-.^ - .-,^^-^.^---,  ■.  ;-.i.L..-..^,i;  -.^.i^a.^... 
But  we  must  not  live  in  the  past.     "Act, 


,1 1 


i 


i 


96 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


I 


I' 


i 


act  in  the  living  present."  Wilt  Thou  not 
revive  us  again,  that  thy  people  may  rejoice 
in  thee?  A  genuine  revival  of  religion 
throughout  our  land  would  do  more  in  a 
single  year  to  remove  our  commercial  and 
financial  troubles,  and  secure  us  against  those 
national  dangers  which  thoughtful  people  now 
see  looming  up  in  the  distance,  than  our  world- 
ly-wise politicians  can  accomplish  in  a  decade 
of  years.  Dishonesty,  private  or  public,  in- 
temperance, immorality,  infidelity,  socialism, 
communism,  or  Jesuitism  cannot  prevail 
among  a  people  who  honor  God  and  whose 
hearts  are  full  of  faith  and  of  the  Holy 


Ghost. 


,.:■-.»?#;:;.  V. 


•;.jr-  ■    ii! 


li    ■'■  ■'/■.  '■■■  ■■  'ii'*' 


■■■,   .       f  .'.■    A 


^n 


CHAPTER  VIII.  ^ 

REVIVALS  AND  THE  YOUNO. 

RELIGIOUS  INDIFFERENCE  OF  SO  MANY 
OF  THE  YOUNG — ^VARIOUS  CAUSES — THE 
CHIEF  CAUSE  IN  THE  HOME — PARENTAL. 
NEGLECT  AND  INCONSISTENCIES — HOW 
SHALL  WE  DEAL  WITH  THE  EVIL? — A 
PLEA  FOR  THE  RESTORATION  OF  THE 
SACRAMENT  OF  BAPTISM  TO  ITS  TRUE 
POSITION  IN  THE  CHURCH — A  SOLEMN 
APPEAL, 

Why  are  so  many  of  our  young  people 

undecided   for   Christ?     How   few  of  them 

attend    the   Bible-class   or  are  seen    in    the 

weekly   prayer-meetings   or  are  engaged   in 

any  specific  Christian  work!     Five  millions 

out  of  the  seven  millions  of  the  young  men 

of  America  were  never,  or  practically  never, 
7  97 


1^1 


iNI 


i 

i 


98 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


)ir 


inside  a  Christian   church !     Only  five  per 
cent,    of    them    ehurch-raerabers,   and    only 
three    per   cent,    engaged    in    any    religious 
',vork !     Whither    are    we    drifting?     Tiiere 
are   breakers   ahead.     Is   not   American    so- 
ciety "  dying  at   the   top " — that   is,   in    its 
young   men?      May   the   Lord   awaken   his 
Church  before  it  is  too  late !     A  very  large 
proportion  of  these  young  men  are  the  chil- 
dren of  Christian  parents;  they  were  early 
dedicated    to   God    in    baptism ;    they   have 
grown  up  under  the  ordinary  influences  of 
the  home  and  the  sanctuary;   and  yet  they 
have  turned  their  backs  upon  the  Cliurch, 
ignoring  alike  the  obligations  and  privileges 
of  the  Christian ;  and  millions  of  them  are 
rushing  forward  into  life's  solemn  responsi- 
bilities apparently  without  a  single  thought 
of  consecrating  themselves   by  personal  act 
to  the  Lord.     Here  is  how  the  official  or- 
gan of  one  of  the  largest  and  most  active 
churches   in   our  land  speaks:  "The  indif- 
ference manifested  by  the  vast  majority  of 


■ 
nil 


REVIVALS  AND  THE  YOUNG. 


99 


youDg  men  is  sufficient  cause  for  solicitous 
alarm.  Comparatively  few  of  our  young 
people,  young  men  especially,  are  being  con- 
verted. Thousands,  especially  in  our  cities, 
scarcely  ever  enter  a  place  of  worship,  and 
very  few  are  actively  engaged  in  Chris- 
tian work.  Many  boys  leave  our  Sunday- 
schools  as  soon  as  they  grow  into  manhood, 
and  gradually  drift  off  from  all  church  re- 
lations. Many  others  remain  with  us  as 
regular  attendants  upon  our  public  services, 
moral  and  respectable,  but  worldly  and  spir- 
itually indifferent."         t    .,   ,  -... 

Various  causes  have  been  assigned  for  this 
religious  indifference  on  the  part  of  so  many 
of  the  young.  The  vigorous  and  aggressive 
skepticism  of  the  day ;  the  speculative  and 
materialistic  spirit  of  the  age ;  false  views 
of  liberty,  properly  called  libertinism ;  licen- 
tiousness ;  eagerness  to  get  wealth  without  re- 
garding the  morality  of  the  means ;  the  pop- 
ular amusements  of  society,  and  the  excesses 
usually  connected  with  them;  the  extensive 


f 

■  ili.i 


100 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


reading  of  trashy,  sensational  literature, — all 
these  are  doing  an  incalculable  amount  of 
mischief  by  indisposing  and  unfitting  mul- 
titudes of  the  young  for  serious  reflection  or 
the  discharge  of  Christian  obligation.  In- 
temperance with  its  kindred  vices  and  asso- 
ciations hi  making  havoc  of  many  souls. 
Then,  again,  the  worldliness,  the  selfishness, 
the  unkindness  of  many  church-members,  are 
repelling  the  young  from  the  bosom  of  the 
Church,  and  driving  them  to  seek  enjoyment 
in  the  world  and  the  things  thereof. 

But,  powerful  as  these  evil  agencies  are, 
they  do  not  by  any  means  constitute  a  suf- 
ficient explanation  of  the  indifference — in 
some  cases,  positive  aversion — to  religion 
on  the  part  of  so  many  of  the  young. 
Would  we  trace  this  deplorable  evil  to  its 
source,  we  must  look  beyond  the  mere  tend- 
encies  and  temptations  of  our  time — these 
are  themselves  but  effects  which  are  closely 
connected  with  certain  causes;  we  must  look 
beyond  the  imperfections  of  church-members 


iftnis 


REVIVALS  AND  THE  YOUNG. 


101 


— these  are  probably  no  greater  in  our  time 
than  at  any  former  age  of  the  Church  ;  we 
must  look  to  the  home.  What  we  want  at 
the  present  day  is  a  powerful  revival  of  prac- 
tical piety  in  the  family.  We  need  a  deeper 
and  more  scriptural  sense  of  the  importance 
of  the  family  and  its  relation  to  the  State 
and  Church.  "Out  of  families/'  says  Lu- 
ther, "  nations  are  spun."  The  character  of 
the  Church  as  well  as  of  the  nation  is  deter- 
mined in  the  home.  There  the  first  and 
strongest  impressions  are  made,  and  an  edu- 
cation is  insensibly  gained  which  schools  can 
never  supply  nor  after-influences  ever  efface. 
The  family  is  God's  institution  (Gen.  2  :  18 ; 
Ps.  68  :  6),  and  for  more  than  two  thousand 
five  hundred  years  after  the  Fall  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  true  God  was  preserved  among 
men  chiefly  by  heads  of  families.  In  the 
absolute  and  long  dependents  of  children 
upon  their  parents  for  the  supply  of  nearly 
every  want,  God  surely  teaches  us  how  sacred 
is  the  trust  that  lies  in  the  mother's  gentle 


I,     t 

11, 

li  ■ 

if 

il    ■ 


l\ 


In 


102 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT, 


arms  aud  claims  the  father's  tenderest  care. 
The  young  lamb  and  the  little  nestling,  with 
the  whole  animal  creation,  soon  learn  to  take 
care  of  themselves.  But  the  immortal  child 
is  first  a  helpless  babe,  and  long  an  infant  in 
body  and  mind,  thrown  upon  the  warm  bos- 
om of  maternal  love,  a  delicate,  sensitive, 
precious  being — the  charm  of  the  house- 
hold, the  gift  of  a  beneficent  God,  to  be 
nourished  aud  brought  up  in  God's  fear  and 
for  his  glory,  '^^-^-'i  .^^^^.-^.w:  / -■' ,  ■-,;  i^^r^Om 
Would  we  save  our  young  people,  we  must 
begin  at  the  beginning.  We  must  begin  our 
work,  not  in  the  world,  nor  in  the  Sunday- 
school,  nor  even  in  the  church,  but  in  the 
home,  praying  that  God  in  his  mercy  would 
"  turn  the  heart  of  the  fathers  to  the  children, 
and  the  heart  of  the  children  to  the  fathers." 
Parents  must  carry  their  religious  principles 
into  daily  practice.  Their  home-life  must  be 
a  standing  evidence  of  the  power  and  value 
of  religion.  By  little  deeds  of  kindness,  by 
gentle  words,  by  wise  counsels,  by  pleasant 


REVIVALS  AND  THE  YOUNG. 


103 


looks,  by  a  loving  spirit,  and,  when  neces- 
sary, by  Christian  admonition,  reproof,  cor- 
rection, they  must  exhibit  to  their  children 
the  religion  of  Jesus.  Nothing  can  com- 
pensate for  the  loss  of  parental  example  and 
instruction.  . 

fe  In  the  prevailing  lack  of  family  religion 
and  parental  authority  throug-hout  our  land 
we  find  a  sufficient,  though  a  sad,  explanation 
of  the  youthful  indiffereoce  and  irreligion 
which  we  deplore.  Young  persons  come  to 
the  church,  the  Sunday-school  or  the  Bible- 
class,  and  they  are  taught  the  supreme  claims 
of  religion  and  the  duty  aivJ  privilege  of  pro- 
fessing faith  in  Christ.  But  they  go  home  and 
see  their  parents — who,  j:»erhaps,  are  members 
of  the  Church — as  selfish,  as  worldly,  as  fret- 
ful and  irritable  in  temper  as  those  who  make 
no  profession  of  religion.  In  the  home  they 
see  little  of  the  profession  and  less  of  the  prac- 
tice of  religion.  The  parents  live  from  day 
to  day  as  if  money-making  were  everything, 
and  religion  only  a  thing  of  naught  or  at 


104 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


ill 


best  only  an  old  respectable  custom.  The 
public  ordinances  of  religion,  such  as  the  con- 
gregational prayer-meeting  or  the  Sabbath  as- 
sembly, or  even  the  observance  of  the  Lord's 
Supper,  are  for  the  most  trivial  excuses  neg- 
lected. And  even  where  the  parents  attend 
upon  these  means,  how  often  are  the  children 
left  at  home  or  allowed  to  wander  no  one 
knows  where  on  the  Sabbath  !  Children  see 
and  feel  all  this,  and  instinctively  reason,  "If 
there  were  any  great  importance  in  religion ; 
if  God  and  Chri&t  and  heaven  and  hell  were 
what  our  ministers  and  teachers  tell  us  they 
are,  our  fathers  and  mother^)  would  not  only 
tell  us  so,  but  they  would  be  pious  themselves. 
Our  parents  know  better  than  we  what  is  right 
and  safe,  and  if  they  are  not  Christians  why 
should  we  be  concerned?"  Is  it  surprising 
that  under  such  home-influenccs  so  many 
young  persons  soon  come  to  regard  religion 
with  indiiferenec  and  all  public  profession 
of  it  with  positive  aversion  ? — not  a  few  of 
them  living  as  if  God  were  a  myth,  heaven 


REVIVALS   AND   THE   YOUMG. 


105 


a  dream,  the  atonement  a  cheat  and  eternity 
nothing?  .  >   li; 

How  are  we  to  deal  with  this  great  evil  on 
the  part  of  parents  ?  Does  any  one  say  it  is 
vain  to  attempt  to  arouse  our  people  to  a  right 
sense  of  duty  on  this  matter?  I  reply,  No 
good  work  is  hopeless  so  long  as  there  is  a 
God  of  infinite  power  and  grace  in  heaven. 

Let  every  pulpit  in  the  land  speak  out 
faithfully,  calling  parents  to  repentance  for 
their  sin  and  warning  the  young  of  break- 
ing covenant  with  God.  Let  parents  be 
exhorted  to  walk  before  their  children  with 
a  perfect  heart,  praying  not  only  for  their 
children,  but  with  them,  taking  them  aside 
one  by  one  for  this  purpose.  John  Newton 
is  not  the  only  one  who  has  been  saved 
from  destruction  by  the  memory  of  his  motli- 
er's  prayers.  Let  Christian  example  and 
fervent  prayer  be  accompanied  with  faith- 
ful instruction.  "And  these  words  which  I 
command  thee,  shall  be  in  thine  heart;  and 
thou  shalt  teach  them  diligently  unto  thy 


i! 


106 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


children"  (Dent.  6  :  6,  7).  First  let  the 
word  of  God  dwell  in  the  parent's  own 
heart,  and  then  let  him  seize  every  oppor- 
tunity to  impress  that  word  upon  the  ten- 
der mind  of  his  child.  The  love,  the  sov- 
ereignty, the  justice,  the  holiness  and  the 
goodness  of  God ;  the  perfect  requirements 
of  his  law ;  the  lost  condition  of  all  men 
by  nature;  the  only  way  of  recovery 
through  Jesus  Christ;  the  necessity  of  a 
change  of  heart  by  the  renewing  of  the 
Holy  Ghost;  and  also  of  repentance  to- 
ward God  and  faith  in  Christ,  such  faith 
as  shall  produce  universal  obedience  to  di- 
vine commands, — ^these  are  the  leading  truths 
of  revelation  with  which  the  mind  of  the 
child  should  early  be  made  familiar. 

Let  the  holy  sacrament  of  baptism  be 
restored  from  that  condition  of  neglect  and 
obscurity  into  which,  alas !  it  has  in  so  many 
instances  fallen,  and  let  it  receive  that  same 
prominence  and  reverence  in  the  teaching  of 
the  Church  that  the  other  sacrament;  that  of 


REVIVALS   AND  THE   YOUNG. 


107 


the  Lord's  Supjx 


until  parents 


now  receives, 
clearly  realize  that  baptism  is  not  a  "  christen- 
ing "  or  a  mere  ^'  giving  a  name  to  the  child /^ 
but  a  solemn  sacrament  in  which  they  recog- 
nize their  child  as  the  property  of  the  Triune 
God,  and  enter  into  a  covenant  with  God  on  ha 
behalf.  Then  as  the  child  gi^ows  up  it  should 
be  taught  the  nature  and  design  of  its  bap- 
tism as  a  dedication  to  God.  In  ev^ery  spir- 
itual way  it  should  be  made  to  understand 
that  God  is  its  Proprietor  and  has  supreme 
claims  upon  its  love  and  ol)edience.  A  child 
thus  instructed  with  meekness  and  tenderness 
will  soon  learn  something  of  the  nature  and 
awful  desert  of  sin  and  its  own  lost  condition 
as  a  sinner.  It  will  learn  something  of  the 
character  of  Jesus  and  of  his  work  as  a  Sa- 
viour. The  heart  of  that  child  will  go  out  to 
the  Saviour,  and  it  will  be  a  delight  to  submit 
to  that  voke  whicli  is  easy  and  that  burden 
which  is  light.  Instead  of  being  liardened 
by  sin  in  the  *'far  country,"  such  a  child  will 
never  by  bitter  experience  know  what  it  is  to 


1 


108 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


wander  from  his  Father's  house,  and  he  will 
never  remember  the  time  when  he  did  not 
love  the  name  of  Jesus.  "  If  parents,"  says 
the  holy  Baxter,  "were  true  to  their  vows 
in  baptism,  nineteen-twentieths  of  those  con- 
secrated to  God  in  infancy  would  grow  up 
pious  and  dutiful,  and  when  they  came  to 
mature  years  would  personally  assume  the 
vows  of  their  baptism  by  an  open  profes- 
sion of  their  faith  at  the  Table  of  the 
Lord." 

"  If  God  hath  wrought,"  says  Matthew 
Henry,  "a  good  work  in  my  soul,  I  desire 
in  humble  thankfulness  to  acknowledge  the 
influence  of  my  infant  baptism  upon  it." 
Well  might  an  equally  high  authority  say, 
*'  If  infant  baptism  were  more  improved,  it 
would  be  less  disputed."  Kind  reader,  whose 
eyes  now  scan  these  lines,  are  you  a  parent? 
Then  let  me  plead  with  you  on  behalf  of 
tliose  dearest  to  you  in  life.  You  are  not, 
like  the  ostrich  in  the  wilderness,  indifferent 
to  your  offspring.     Your  heart  is  not  made 


REVIVALS  AND  THE  YOUNG. 


109 


of  the  nether  millstone.  You  love  your  chil- 
dren. Well,  then,  can  you  think  of  them  sin- 
ning against  God,  abiding  under  the  wrath  of 
the  Most  High,  rushing  forward  to  eternity, 
having  no  God  and  without  hope,  and  yet 
horror  not  take  hold  of  you?  If  you  saw 
your  child  in  the  street  and  the  wheels  about 
to  run  over  it,  would  you  not  rush  to  the  res- 
cue? And  can  you  see  your  child  in  danger 
of  eternal  destruction  and  yet  not  be  moved 
to  earnest,  continued  action  to  save  it  from 
the  awful  doom?  Speak  to  your  children 
concerning  the  soul  and  salvation  ;  do  it  with 
all  the  powerful  oratory  which  the  fond  heart 
of  a  Christian  parent  can  supply ;  take  them 
aside,  one  by  one,  and  plead  with  them  '*  day 
and  night  with  tears ;''  put  them  in  mind  of 
their  early  baptism ;  explain  to  them  the  na- 
ture of  that  sacrament ;  labor  to  make  them 
esteem  its  privileges  and  to  feel  its  obliga- 
tions ;  bring  them  to  the  house  of  God  with 
you  ;  walk  in  your  house  with  a  perfect  heart ; 
pray  for  your  children  as  the  Syro-Phoenician 


no 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


mi  !>> 
r 


I 


■  ':.4  :> 


woman  prayed  for  her  child, — ^and  the  cov- 
enant God  will  be  a  God  to  you  and  to 
them. 

Or  am  I  addressing  one  of  the  baptized 
children  of  the  Church?  Then  I  would 
speak  an  earnest  word  to  you  concerning 
your  relationship  to  the  Christian  Church. 
God  remembers  your  baptism.  He  remem- 
bers that  your  parents  dedicated  you  to  him 
and  put  his  seal  upon  you.  He  would  look 
upon  you  as  his  child.  Will  you  not  look 
upon  him  as  your  God?  Luther  tells  us  of 
a  pious  woman  who,  when  tempted  to  sin, 
replied,  '"'  Baptizata  sum^' — I  am  baptized — 
and  thus  overcame.  And  so,  my  young 
friend,  when  you  are  tempte<l  to  sin  or 
when  you  are  living  in  neglect  of  duty, 
solemnly  say  to  yourself,  "  I  am  baptized ; 
I  have  been  sealed  to  God  in  a  solemn 
covenant;  I  am  not  my  own,  I  am  God's; 
therefore  I  cannot  yield  to  temptation  or 
live  in  willful  neglect  of  duty.  I  dare  not 
repudiate  the  covenant  made  on  my  behalf 


REVIVALS  AND  THE   YOUNG. 


Ill 


)V- 

to 


with  the  Father,  Son  and  Spirit.  Rather 
will  I  anew  dedicate  myself  to  the  God  of 
my  fathers,  the  God  who  loved  me  and  cared 
for  me  in  earliest  infancy  and  through  all  the 
way  of  life,  and  I  will  seek  grace  to  walk 
every  day  as  in  covenant  with  him." 

Young  and  old,  all  you  who  fear  the  Lord 
and  mourn  over  the  desolations  of  Israel, 
come  join  in  prayer  for  such  a  thorough 
revival  of  religion  by  the  outpouring  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  as  will  break  up  the  all-en- 
grossing spirit  of  worldliness  that  so  gen- 
erally pervades  the  homes  of  our  land,  caus- 
ing a  great  shaking  among  the  dry  bones — 
"very  many  and  very  dry" — -the  divine 
breath  entering  in  until  our  revived  and 
quickened  people,  parents  and  children,  shall 
stand  upon  their  feet,  an  exceeding  great 
army,  ready  and  willing  to  do  the  Lord's 
work,  whatever  difficulties  or  discourage- 
ments may   lie  in  the  way. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

EMINENT  REVIVALISTS  AND  HONORED 

TESTS. 

A  MUCH-XEEDED  CAUTION,  WITH  ILLUSTRA- 
TION— JOHN  LIVINGSTONE  AND  KIRK  OF 
SHOTTS — ORIGIN  OF  THANKSGIVING  MON- 
DAY— WHITEFIELD  AND  THE  THREE  r's 
— TESTS — JONATHAN  EDWARDS  AND  HIS 
GREAT  SERMON — SOME  OF  HIS  TEXTS  AND 
THEMES — EDWARD  PAYSON  :  HIS  LIFE — 
TEXTS  AND   THEMES. 

We  are  not  of  those  who  love  to  exalt  men 
or  one  class  of  Christian  workers  above  an- 
other. No  need  to  sound  a  trumpet  for  any, 
for  when  the  great  trumpet  shall  sound  every 
man's  work  shall  be  revealed.  The  true 
Christian  worker  is  like  the  harp  which,  as 
one  says,  sounds  sweetly,  yet  hears  not  its 

112 


I 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TESTS. 


113 


r's 


own  melody.  We  are  poorly  qualified  for 
comparing  Christian  workers,  and  much  harm 
has  been  done  by  unduly  magnifying  the  office 
of  the  evangelist  to  the  disparagement  of  the 
regular  ministry.  Two  men  enter  a  forest 
and  toil  hard  during  the  winter  months  fell- 
ing the  trees.  Then  when  spring  comes  they 
spend  long  weary  months  chopping  and  log- 
ging and  rooting  and  stumping,  until,  with 
great  patience  and  perseverance,  they  succeed 
in  gathering  the  whole  into  heaps.  All  over 
the  ten  acres  there  are  the  piles  which  result 
from  their  industry,  and  no  one  perhaps  but 
themselves  knows  how  much  of  labor  it  re- 
quired to  accomplish  such  a  result.  It  was 
hard  work,  but  very  quiet  and  obscure  and 
seen  only  by  a  few.  But  one  day  a  third 
man  starts  into  the  field  with  a  shovel  full 
of  coals,  and,  applying  them  to  a  heap,  sets  it 
all  ablaze.  The  flames  leap  up  to  the  sky, 
and  as  he  goes  from  heap  to  heap  with  his 
torch  he  soon  has  the  whole  field  in  a  fury  of 

fire  and  smoke,  and  people  for  miles  around 
8 


t 


114 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


see  and  wonder.  Who  did  all  this  ?  Why, 
we  are  told,  the  man  with  the  torch,  who  has 
run  from  pile  to  pile  to  start  it  blazing.  It 
is  thus  ofttimes  in  the  Church  that  laborious 
pastors  work  through  long  years  of  care  and 
toil,  getting  things  ready  for  somebody  else  to 
fire  and  put  in  motion.  They  preach  and 
pray  and  teach  and  weep  and  agonize  for  a 
long,  anxious  time,  and  then  the  stranger 
arrives  and  by  a  few  explosives  ignites  the 
heaps  and  sets  all  ablaze,  and  gets  all  the 
praise. 

Honor  to  whom  honor  is  due.  They  that 
turn  many  to  righteousness  shall  shine  as  the 
stars  for  ever  and  ever ;  and  our  object  in  this 
chapter  is  to  mention  a  few  of  these  eminent 
workers,  and  especially  to  point  out  those 
precious  passages  of  Scripture  which  in  their 
hands  were  so  wonderfully  blessed  by  the 
Spirit. 

Monday,  June  21,  1630,  will  ever  remain 
a  memorable  day  in  the  history  of  Scottish 
Presbyterianism.     On  that  day  John  Living- 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TESTS. 


115 


7» 
as 

It 

>us 

lid 

to 
nd 
r  a 
ger 
the 
the 


stone,  twenty-seven  years  of  age  and  not  yet 
ordained,  preached  a  sermon  in  the  church- 
yard at  Shotts  under  which  five  hundred  souls 
were  converted  and  a  great  work  commenced 
which  spread  through  the  whole  of  Clydes- 
dale, and  the  results  of  which  eternity  alone 
will  fully  unfold.  The  circumstances  were 
very  interesting.  The  day  before  was  a  com- 
munion Sabbath,  and  the  Spirit  of  God  was 
evidently  working  mightily  upon  the  hearts 
of  the  people.  For  several  days  previous 
much  time  had  been  spent  in  social  prayer. 
After  being  dismissed  on  the  Sabbath  many 
spent  the  whole  night  in  different  companies 
in  prayer.  On  the  Monday  morning  the 
ministers,  seeing  the  people  still  lingering, 
as  if  unwilling  to  leave  a  spot  which  had 
been  to  them  as  the  very  gate  of  heaven, 
agreed  to  have  service  on  that  day,  though 
it  was  not  usual  at  that  time  to  preach  on  the 
Monday  after  communion.  Young  Living- 
stone was  selected  for  the  sermon.  His  dif- 
fidence, however,  was  great,  and  he  was  over* 


ii ' 


'M 


if 'J 


116        OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

••. . 

come  with  a  sense  of  un worthiness  and  unfit- 
ness to  speak  on  such  a  solemn  occasion  and 
in  the  presence  of  so  many  aged  and  more 
experienced  ministers.  Alone  in  the  field  in 
the  morning,  he  began  to  think  of  stealing 
away  rather  than  address  the  people,  and 
had  actually  gone  some  distance,  and  was 
just  about  to  lose  sight  of  the  kirk,  when 
the  words,  "  Have  I  been  a  wilderness  unto 
Israel?  a  land  of  darkness?"  (Jer.  2  :  31) 
were  brought  to  his  mind  with  such  clear- 
ness and  power  that  he  durst  no  longer  dis- 
trust God.  He  returned,  took  his  stand  upon 
a  tombstone  outside  the  church,  and  preached 
from  the  text  (Ezek,  36  :  25,  26),  "  Then  will 
I  sprinkle  clean  water  upon  you,  and  ye  shall 
be  clean."  The  rest  I  will  give  in  his  own 
words :  ^^  I  had  about  an  hour  and  a  half  on 
the  points  I  had  meditated  on;  and  in  the 
end,  ofiering  to  close  with  some  words  of  ex- 
hortation, I  was  led  on  about  an  hour's  time 
with  such  liberty  and  melting  of  heart  as  I 
never  had  the  like  in  public  all  my  life." 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TESTS. 


117 


The  first  iDdicatiou  uf  awakening  among  the 
people  was  in  this  way  :  During  the  time 
Mr.  Livingstone  v/as  preaching  there  was  a 
soft  shower  of  rain,  and  when  the  people 
began  to  move  about  he  said,  "  What  a  mercy 
it  is  that  the  Lord  sifts  that  rain  through 
these  heavens  on  us,  and  does  not  rain  down 
fire  and  brimstone  as  he  did  upon  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah  ?*  After  this  the  practice,  still  ob- 
served in  most  Presbyterian  churches,  of  hav- 
ing a  thanksgiving  service  on  the  Monday 
following  the  sacrament,  became  general  in 
Scotland. 

Whitefield  has  been  characterized  as  **the 
Field  Evangel ist.'^  His  epitaph  records  that 
he  was  born  at  Gloucester,  England,  Dec. 
16,  1714;  educated  at  Oxford  University; 
ordained  in  1736;  that  in  a  ministry  of 
thirty-four  years  he  crossed  the  Atlantic 
thirteen  times  and  preached  over  eighteen 
thousand  sermons.  His  average  congrega- 
tion was  two  thousand;  frequently  he 
preached  to  ten  thousand;  at  Philadelphia 


^H 


118 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


i 


to  twenty  thousand;  at  Boston  Commons 
to  thirty  thousand;  and  at  Moorfield  to 
sixty  thousand  I  He  had  a  voice  of  won- 
derful richness  acd  pathos^  and  his  deliv- 
ery, according  to  Southey,  was  perfect.  His 
subject  ,vas  always  one  or  all  of  the  three 
R^s — Ruin,  Regeneration,  Redemption:  man 
ruined  wholly,  eternally  ruined  by  the  fall ; 
man  regenerated  by  the  Spirit  and  made  a 
new  creature  in  Christ  Jesus ;  man  redeemed 
from  all  his  sins  by  the  precious  blood  of 
Christ.  He  always  honored  God,  and  God 
honored  him,  and  made  him  as  a  mighty 
angel  flying  from  country  to  country,  preach- 
ing the  everlasting  gospel  to  every  creature. 
Some  of  his  most  frequent  sayings  were: 
"Let  us  be  all  heart;''  "The  world  wants 
more  heat  than  light;"  "Lord,  make  us  all 
flames  of  fire;"  "We  are  immortal  till  our 
work  is  done."  I  subjoin  a  number  of  the 
texts  from  which  he  most  frequently  preached : 
Jer.  6  :  14:  "Saying  Peace,  peace;  when 
there  is  no  peace." 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TEST3. 


119 


ns 
to 
n- 

V- 

is 
ee 
an 
HI 


John  9  :  35:  "Dost  thou  believe  on  the 
Son  of  God  r 

Jer.  23  :  6 :  '*  The  Lord  our  Righteous- 


ness. 


>» 


Acts  26  :  28 :  "  The  Almost  Christian." 

John  5  :  39  : "  The  Duty  of  Searching 
the  Scriptures." 

Acts  19:2:  "  Marks  of  having  Received 
the  Holy  Ghost." 

1  Cor.  6  :  11 :  "Justification  by  Christ." 

1  Cor.  2  :  11 :  "Satan's  Devices." 

2  Cor.  5  :  17 :  "Regeneration." 

Eph.  5:18:  "The  Sin  of  Drunkenness." 

Matt.  25  :  46  :  "  The  Eternity  of  Hell  Tor- 
ments." 

Josh.  24  i  15 :  "  The  Great  Duty  of  Family 
Religion." 

Ps.  46  :  1-6 :  "  Christ  the  Believer's  Ref- 
uge." 

Gen.  6  :  24:  "Walking  with  God." 

Ps.  45  :  10,  11:  "Christ  the  Best  Hus- 
band." 

Isa.  54  :  5  :  "  Thy  Maker  is  thy  Husband." 


120 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


This  last  was  the  text  that  was  most  blessed 
while  he  was  preach iug  in  Scotland  ;  and  most 
of  those  who  were  converted  through  the  in- 
strumentality of  this  sermon  were  men. 

Jonathan  Edwards  is  thus  described  by  Mr. 
Prince  in  his  Christian  History :  "  He  was  a 
preacher  of  a  low  and  moderate  voice,  a  nat- 
ural delivery,  and  without  any  agitation  of 
body  or  anything  else  in  his  manner  to  excite 
attention  except  his  habitual  and  great  solem- 
nity, looking  and  speaking  as  in  the  presence 
of  God  and  with  a  weighty  sense  of  the  mat- 
ter delivered."  The  best  known  of  his  ser- 
mons is  that  on  "Sinners  in  the  Hand  of  an 
Angry  God."  The  text  is  Deut.  32  :  35: 
"To  me  belongeth  vengeance  and  recom- 
pense; their  foot  shall  slide  in  due  time; 
for  the  day  of  their  calamity  is  at  hand, 
and  the  things  that  shall  come  upon  them 
make  haste."  It  was  preached  during  the 
time  of  the  "Great  Awakening,"  and  was 
accompanied  with  extraordinary  manifesta- 
tions of  the  Spirit's  power.     As  Edwards 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TESTS. 


121 


in- 


preached,  suddenly  the  Holy  Ghost  descend- 
ed, the  people  began  to  tremble  and  even 
cry  out  under  the  terrors  of  conviction,  and 
the  awakening  spread  through  all  the  New 
England  colonies,  and  many  thousands  were 
added  to  the  Lord.  The  following  are  some 
of  Edwards'  themes  and  t«xts,  and  from  them 
may  be  gained  a  pretty  clear  idea  of  the 
truths  that  were  so  wonderfully  blessed  in 
his  hands : 

Ps.  94  :  9-11 :  "Man's  Natural  Blindness 
in  the  Things  of  Religion." 

Rom.  5  :  10 :  "  Men  naturally  God's  Ene- 


mies. 


}y 


Rom.  4:5:  "  Justification  by  Faith  alone." 
Rev.  5  :  5,  6  :  "  The  Excellency  of  Christ." 
Ps.  25  :  11 :  "  Pardon  for  the  Greatest  Siu- 


9f 


ner. 

John  14  :  27 :  "  The  Peace  which  Christ 

Gives  to  his  People." 

Rom.  9:18:  "God's  Sovereignty." 
Deut.  32  :  35:  "Sinners  in  the  Hand  of 

an  Angry  God." 


122 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


Ps.  65  :  2:  "The  Most  High  a  Prayer- 
hearing  God/' 

Heb.  11  :  13,  14 :  "The  Christian's  Life  a 
Journey  toward  Heaven/' 

Edward  Payson  was  born  at  Rindge,  New 
Hampshire,  July  25,  1783,  and  died  at  Port- 
land, Me.,  Oct.  22,  1827.  His  life  was  one 
of  much  physical  suflPering;  occasional  mental 
despondency,  but  uninterrupted  and  most  joy- 
ous confidence  in  Christ  as  his  personal  and 
ever-present  Saviour.  Love  to  the  Saviour 
and  for  the  souls  of  men  was  with  him  an 
all-absorbing  passion.  His  preaching  was 
characterized  by  extraordinary  pathos  and  so- 
lemnity, but  the  most  remarkable  thing  about 
him  was  his  prayers.  These  were  just  the  out- 
pourings of  a  soul  filled  with  a  glowing,  ar- 
dent, overpowering  affection  for  Christ.  One 
who  enjoyed  his  ministry  for  seven  years  says : 
"  It  was  my  custom  to  close  my  eyes  when  he 
began  to  pray,  and  it  was  always  a  letting 
down,  a  sort  of  rude  fall,  to  open  them  again 
when  he  had  concluded  and  find  myself  still 


REVIVALISTS  AND  TESTS. 


123 


er- 


e  a 


on  the  earth.  His  prayers  always  took  my 
spi  into  the  immediate  presence  of  Christ, 
amid  the  glories  of  the  spiritual  world ;  and 
to  look  around  again  on  this  familiar  and  com- 
paratively misty  earth  was  almost  painful,'' 
His  ruling  passion  was  strong  in  death.  "  The 
Celestial  City,"  he  said,  "  is  full  in  my  view. 
Its  glories  beam  upon  me,  its  breezes  fan  me, 
its  odors  are  wafted  to  me,  its  sounds  strike 
upon  my  ear,  and  its  spirit  is  breathed  into 
my  heart.  Nothing  separates  me  from  it  but 
the  river  of  death,  which  now  appears  but  as 
an  insignificant  rill,  that  may  be  crossed  at  a 
single  step  whenever  God  shall  give  permis- 
sion. The  Sun  of  Righteousness  has  been 
gradually  drawing  nearer  and  nearer,  appear- 
ing larger  and  brighter  as  he  approaches,  and 
now  he  fills  the  whole  hemisphere,  pouring 
forth  a  flood  of  giory  in  which  I  seem  to  float 
like  an  insect  in  the  beams  of  the  sun,  exult- 
ing, yet  almost  trembling,  while  I  gaze  on  this 
excessive  brightness."  Among  his  last  words 
were  the  following :  "  The  battle's  fought !  the 


124        OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIBIT. 


Id  s ' 


battle's  foaght !  and  the  victory  is  won !  the 
victory  is  won  for  ever.  I  am  going  to  bathe 
in  an  ocean  of  purity  and  benevolence  and 
happiness  to  all  eternity."  I  subjoin  a  few 
of  Payson's  texts  and  themes: 

Dan.  5  :  27  :  "  Men  Tried  and  Found  De- 
fective." 

Job  22  :  5 :  "  Our  Sins  Infinite  in  Number 
and  Enormity." 

1  Thess.  5  :  23:  "Amiable  Instincts  not 
Holiness." 

2  Cor.  5  :  10 :  "  The  Final  Judgment." 
Matt.  23  :  33 :  "  The  Difficulty  jf  Escap- 

ing  the  Damnation  of  Hell." 

Jcr.  22  :  24 :  "  Punishment  of  the  Impen- 
itent Inevitable  and  Justifiable." 

John  6  :  37 :  "  Christ  Rejects  None  that 
Come  to  Him." 

Gen.  15:16:  "  Why  the  Wicked  are  Spared 

for  a  Season." 

Jonah  1  :  G :  "  The  Sleeper  Awakened." 
Mark  10  :  14 :  "  How  Little  Children  are 

Prevented  from  Coming  to  Christ." 


CHAPTER  X. 

SHALL   WE  HAVE  A  BEVIVALf 

PRESENT  STATE  OP  THE  CHURCH  AND  OF  THE 
WORLD — HUMAN  AGENCY  IN  A  REVIVAL — 
THE  MEANS  :  PLAIN,  EARNEST  PREACHING 
OF  THE  GOSPEL ;  CONSECRATION  OF  J  IFE  ; 
PRA/ER;  PERSONAL  EFFORT  ;  GIVING  GOD 
ALL  THE  GLORY. 

Do  we  not  need  a  revival  ?  Where  is  the 
congregation  the  members  of  which  are  as 
holy,  as  earnest,  as  prayerful,  as  liberal  and 
as  aggressive  as  they  ought  to  be?  Do  not 
many  professors  rest  in  the  mere  form  of 
religion?  They  have  a  name  to  live  while 
they  are  spiritually  dead.  Do  not  the  vast 
majority  of  Christians  live  far  below  their 
privileges,  satisfied  with  a  mere  glimpse  of 
Christ's  pardon,  a  mere  crumb  from  his  table, 

125 


126        OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


a  mere  drop  of  his  love  ?    Think  of  the  mul- 
titudes outside  the  Church  who  do  not  even 
profess  any  interest  in  Christ  or  give  any  evi- 
dence of  a  change  of  heart.     In  the  light  of 
God's  truth  how  sad  their  condition,  how  ter- 
rible their  danger !    Try  to  realize  it.    White- 
field  saw  it,  and  sometimes  standing  before  the 
thousands,  he  could  only  exclaim,  ^*  The  wrath 
to  come  !   The  wrath  to  come !"  and,  overcome 
with  emotion,  sit  down  again.     Paul  felt  it, 
and  you  know  how  he  expresses  his  agony  for 
the  salvation  of  souls  as  a  travailing  in  birth 
(Gal.  4  :  19).     The  Psalmist  saw  it  and  felt 
the  danger  of  the  unconverted  :  "  Horror  hath 
taken  hold  upon  me  because  of  the  wicked  that 
forsake  thy  law''  (Ps.  119  :  53);  and  again: 
"Rivers  of  waters  run  down  mine  eyes  be- 
cause they  keep  not  thy  law"  (Ps.  119  :  136). 
Isaiah  saw  it,  and  hear  his  language :  "  There- 
fore, said  I,  Look  away  from  me,  I  will  weep 
bitterly ;  labor  not  to  comfort  me,  because  of 
the  spoiling  of  the  daughter  of  my  people " 
(Isa.  22  :  4).    Jeremiah  saw  it,  and  hear  him : 


SHALL  WE   HAVE  A   REVIVAL?       127 


1- 

en 
1- 
bf 
r- 
e- 
he 
Lth 
ne 


"  Oh  that  my  head  were  waters,  and  mine  eyes 
a  fountain  of  tears,  that  I  might  weep  clay  and 
night  for  the  slain  of  the  daughter  of  my  peo- 
ple'^  (Jer.  9  : 1 ). 

But  where  is  this  w^eeping,  this  intense 
earnestness,  this  intense  soul-agony,  on  the  part 
of  the  Lord's  people  at  the  present  day  be- 
cause of  the  souls  perishing  around  us  ?  Six 
millions  of  people  die  every  year,  the  vast 
majority  of  them  professing  no  interest  in 
Christ.  The  whole  world  lieth  in  the  evil 
one.  The  enemy  is  coming  in  like  a  flood. 
Intemperan^,  Sabbath  profanation,  licentious- 
ness, wondliness,  fraud  prevailing  on  every 
side.  Only,  as  observed  in  a  former  chapter, 
five  per  cent,  of  the  young  men  of  America  are 
members  of  any  Church,  and  only  three  per 
c?nt.  of  them  are  doing  any  religious  work, 
while  seventy-five  out  of  every  hundred  are 
practically  never  inside  a  church-door.  The 
prospect  is  sufficiently  appalling.  Oh,  sirs, 
the  Church  of  Christ  to-day  is  engaged  in  a 
terrible  conflict.     We  need  the  baptism  of  the 


■ill 

-I 

V' 


128 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


Holy  Ghost.   Shall  we  not  then  cry,  "  O  Lord, 
revive  thy  work !" 

We  are  apt  to  regard  a  religious  revival  as 
a  kind  of  miracle  or  as  some  arbitrary  man- 
ifestation of  the  Almighty's  power,  given  in 
his  own  time  and  without  any  reference  to 
any  action  of  his  Church  as  a  preparation  for 
it.     There  is  no  use  trying  to  "  work  up  a  re- 
vival," we  often  hear  said.     "  A  revival,"  it 
is  urged,  "depends  upon  the  sovereign  will 
of  God,  and  we  are  not  to  move  until  there 
are  unmistakable  signs  that  God  is  about  to 
commence  a  work  of  salvation,  lest  we  run 
before  we  are  sent,  and  injure  the  cause  of 
religion."     All  such  reasoning  is  based  upon 
an  erroneous  conception  of  the  divine  method. 
Undoubtedly  a  revival  is  a  work  of  God,  oth- 
erwise we  need  not  pray,  "  O  Lord,  revive  thy 
work."    But  God  works  through  means  in  the 
spiritual  as  in  the  natural  world ;  and  he  has 
ordained  that  his  people  shall  be  co-workers 
with  him  in  extending  his  kingdom.     They 
are  to  plant  and  to  water,  in  order  that  he 


SHALL   WE  HAVE   A   REVIVAL?       129 


.rd, 


may  give  the  increase.  It  is  the  Spirit  that 
quickens  believers  and  converts  sinners ;  and 
the  Spirit  is  given  not  in  any  arbitrary  man- 
ner or  without  regard  to  the  human  will,  but 
in  answer  to  prayer  and  to  render  the  human 
agency  successful  A  revival  is  thus  in  an 
important  sense  the  result  of  means  employed 
by  the  Church.  If  the  Church  is  seeking  a 
revival,  she  must  "awake  and  put  on  her 
strength ;"  she  must  stir  herself  to  take  hold 
of  God.  Isaiah  said  :  "  As  soon  as  Zion  tra- 
vailed she  brought  forth  children ;"  and  it  is 
true  of  the  Church  to-day. 

What,  then,  are  the  means  which  the  Church 
should  employ  to  promote  revivals  ?  I  answer, 
We  must  have  much  plain,  earnest  preaching 
of  the  gospel.  The  apostolic  Church  was  a 
revived  and  revival  Church,  and  it  gave  the 
very  first  place  to  preaching.  The  most  strik- 
ing figure  in  the  Pentecost  scene  is  Peter  stand- 
ing up  to  preach  in  the  company  of  his  breth- 
ren.    Wherever  the  apostles  went  it  is  said, 

"  There  they  preached  the  gospel ;"  "  they  so 
9 


130 


OUTPOURINGS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


spake  the  word;"  "the  word  of  the  Lord 
was  published  throughout  all  that  region;" 
"  it  pleased  God  by  the  foolishness  of  preach- 
ing to  save  them  that  believe."  Preaching, 
then,  is  God's  chief  means  for  advancing  his 
kingdom.  But  remember,  it  must  be  the 
preaehing  of  the  gospel.  However  the  ag- 
nostic may  sneer  and  the  ungodly  rage,  that 
preaching  is  the  best  preaching,  the  most 
effective,  the  most  edifying,  the  most  soul- 
saviMg,  that  has  the  most  of  Christ  in  it. 
Such  was  Paul's  preaching.  He  determined 
to  know  nothing  save  Jesus  Christ.  "  I  am 
not  ashamed  of  the  gospel,"  he  says.  And 
when  we  say  that  Christ  ought  to  be  the  sub- 
ject of  every  sermon,  let  no  one  think  that 
the  subject  will  ever  grow  threadl)are — Christ 
in  his  divinity  and  humanity,  in  his  person, 
his  character,  his  work,  as  our  wisdom,  right- 
eousness, sanctification  and  redemption  ;  in  his 
birth,  life,  death,  miracles,  parables,  his  prayers 
and  his  preaching ;  Christ  suffering  and  con- 
quering, Christ  exalted  and  ruling,  Christ  al] 


SHALT-   WB   HAVE  A   REVIVAL?       131 


lis 


in  all !  Why,  the  subject  is  endless ;  eternity 
cannot  exhaust  it.  And  it  must  be  plain 
preaching  if  it  is  to  affect  the  raasses.  The 
hiding  of  the  cross  beneath  the  veil  of  fine 
language  and  the  flowers  of  rhetoric  is,  I 
verily  believe,  the  source  of  much  of  Ihat 
want  of  sympathy  with  the  Church  which 
so  sadly  characterizes  many  in  the  lower 
ranks  of  society  at  the  present  day.  And 
besides  being  plainly  preached,  the  gospel 
must  be  earnestly  preached.  McCheyne  was 
accustomed  to  visit  some  one  or  two  of  his 
dying  parishioners  on  the  Saturday  with  a 
view  of  being  stirred  up  to  greater  earnest- 
ness in  the  Sunday's  work.  Of  his  preach- 
ing one  says,  "  He  appeared  as  if  he  were 
dying  almost  to  have  you  converted."  There 
is  a  beautiful  legend  of  St.  Chrysostom.  He 
was  a  man  of  much  culture  and  refinement, 
yet  in  his  earlier  ministry  he  was  not  re- 
markable for  success.  But  one  night  he 
had  a  vision.  He  thought  he  was  in  the 
pulpl*^     Round  about  him  were  holy  angels. 


132 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


Beside  hirn  was  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  be- 
fore him  the  congregation  to  which  he 
was  to  preach.  The  vision  deeply  afifected 
him.  The  following  day  he  ascended  the 
pulpit;  he  felt  the  impression  of  the  scene, 
he  thought  of  the  holy  angels  as  if  gathered 
around  him,  of  the  blessed  Saviour  as  at  his 
side  listening  to  his  words  and  beholding  his 
spirit ;  he  became  intensely  earnest,  and  from 
that  time  forward  a  wonderful  power  attend- 
ed his  ministry.  Multitudes  gathered  around 
him  wherever  he  preached.  Though  he  had 
the  simple  name  of  John  while  he  lived,  the 
ages  have  called  him  Chrysostom,  the  Golden 
Mouth.  Could  we  as  ministers  forget  our- 
selves in  the  pulpit,  and  remember  only  that 
there  is  a  heaven  above  and  a  hell  below  with 
dying  sinners  before  us  and  a  living,  loving, 
mighty  Saviour  at  our  side,  and  that  we  are 
commissioned  by  that  Saviour  to  speak  with 
those  sinners,  and  to  plead  with  them  in  the 
name  of  his  love  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to 
come  and  lay  hold  on  eternal  life,  would  not 


SHALL  WE  HAVE  A  REVIVAL?   133 

our  preaching  be  earnest  and  would  not  the 
almighty  Spirit  bear  our  words  with  wings  of 
fire  to  the  hearts  of  the  people,  arousing  the 
careless  and  convicting  the  unconverted? 

"  We'd  preach  as  though  we  ne^er  shouid  preach  again, 
And  as  a  dying  man  to  dying  men." 

If  we  want  a  revival  of  religion  we  must 
see  that  the  faithful  preaching  of  the  gospel 
is  backed  up  by  holiness  of  life.  Our  God  is 
a  God  of  holiDe&s.  Before  he  appeared  on 
Mount  Sinai,  the  children  of  Israel  had  to 
cleanse  themselves  for  three  days.  And  be- 
fore Israel  could  take  possession  of  the  prom- 
ised rest  of  Canaan,  Joshua  had  to  see  to  it 
that  they  were  purified.  So  if  we  wish 
God  to  do  a  great  work  for  us,  we  must  sanc- 
tify ourselves.  Whatever  of  pride  or  envy 
or  anger  Oi-  evil-speaking  or  worldliness  or 
covetousness  or  sloth  fulness  we  find  in  our- 
selves, we  must  be  willing  to  give  up  for 
ever;  for  these  things  grieve  the  Spirit,  and 
the  Lord  will  not  hold  fellowship  with  us 


li! 


134 


OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


while  we  indulge  them.  Do  we  not  see  the 
explanation  of  the  cheerless,  low  spiritual 
life  of  inany  in  the  Church?  They  are 
neglecting  some  known  d^if  or  living  in 
some   known  sin. 


"  The  dearest  idol  I  have  known, 
Whatever  that  idol  be, 
Help  me  to  tear  it  from  thy  throne, 
And  worship  only  thee." 


Truth  is  most  powerful  when  •  esented  in 
a  life  transfigured  and  ennobled  b^^-  \L  The 
raost  effective  way  to  commend  our  religion 
is  by  a  godly  life.  Character  is  mightier  than 
profession.  The  world  cares  not  how  we 
preach  on  the  Sabbath  or  how  you  speak 
and  sing  at  the  week-evening  meeting;  but 
if  you  live  soberly,  righteously  and  godly; 
if  you  are  gentle  in  temper,  patient  in  trou- 
ble, honest  in  business,  always  generous,  cheer- 
ful, unselfish,  and  always  seeking  to  make 
others  happy — the  world  will  see  it  and  recog- 
nize it,  and  ask  the  reason  why.     Holiness 


SHALL  WE  HAVE  A  REVIVAL?   135 


of  life  is  an  argument  for  the  truth  and  power 
of  religion  which  the  most  hardened  will  ob- 
serve and  the  most  obtuse  understand.  And 
if  the  modern  Church  is  far  behind  the  ancient 
in  faith  and  zeal  and  in  revival  power,  per- 
haps it  is  because  it  is  far  behind  it  in  godly 
living. 

And  if  we  want  a  revival  we  must  jfyray  for 
it.  "  I  would  rather/'  says  Moody,  "  pray  like 
Daniel  than  preach  like  Grabriel.''  We  cannot 
explain  the  "  why  '^  or  the  "  how,"  but  we  know 
by  revelation  and  experience  that  true  prayer 
will  give  birth  to  revival.  The  reason  many 
congregations  have  no  revival  is  because  they 
do  not  pray.  Ah,  my  reader,  don't  criticise 
your  minister,  and  complain  that  he  does  not 
preach  well  enough,  until  you  are  sure  that 
you  yourself  have  done  your  full  duty  in  the 
case.  Don't  say,  "  It  is  Moses'  fault  that  the 
Amalekites  prevail,"  when  God  has  told  you 
to  hold  up  Moses'  hands  and  you  have  not 
done  it.  When  the  Church  groans  and  trav- 
ails in  pain  and  pours  forth  loud  cries  and 


136        OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


tears,  the  blessing  will  come,  the  life  will  be 
manifested.  When  God  promises  to  give  a 
new  heart  and  a  new  spirit  to  Israel,  he 
says,  "I  will  yet  for  this  be  inquired  of  by 
the  house  of  Israel,  to  do  it  for  them.'* 
When  God  promises  to  give  to  Christ  the 
heathen  for  his  heritage,  he  promises  it  in 
answer  to  prayer:  "Ask  of  me  and  I  will 
give  thee."  When  he  w^ould  give  life  to  the 
dead  and  dry  bones  in  the  open  valley,  he 
directs  his  servant  to  pray,  "  Come  from  the 
four  winds,  O  Spirit,  and  breathe  on  these 
slain,  that  they  may  live.''  When  Elijah 
prayed,  the  nation  was  reformed ;  when 
Hezekiah  prayed,  the  people  were  healed; 
when  the  disciples  prayed,  Pentecost  ap- 
peared ;  when  John  Wesley  and  his  com- 
panions prayed,  England  was  revived ;  when 
John  Knox  prayed,  Scotland  was  refreshed ; 
when  the  Sabbath-school  teachers  at  Tauny- 
brake  prayed,  eleven  thousand  were  added  to 
the  Church  in  one  year ;  when  Luther  prayed, 
the  papacy  was  shaken ;  when  Baxter  prayed, 


SHALL  WP:  have   A  REVIVAL?       137 

I 


be 


by 

9} 


Kidderminster  was  aroused ;  and  in  the  lives  of 
Whitefield,  Payson,  Edwards,  Tennent,  whole 
nights  of  prayer  were  succeeded  by  whole 
days  of  soul-winning.  To  your  knees,  then, 
ye  Christians  !  Plead  until  the  windows  open, 
plead  until  the  springs  unlock,  plead  until  the 
clouds  part,  plead  until  the  rains  descend, 
plead  until  the  flood:i  of  blessing  come. 

Then  to  faithful  preaching  and  holy  living 
and  earnest  prayer  there  must  be  added  per- 
sonal effort  to  save  souls.  What  would  be 
thought  of  a  man  praying  for  a  harvest  of 
wheat,  but  neither  ploughing  nor  sowing? 
Yet  this  is  what  many  are  doing  in  the 
Church.  So  far  as  personal  effort  to  res- 
cue the  perishing  is  concerned,  multitudes  of 
church-members  are  doing  nothing.  They 
are  barren  trees  in  the  vineyard,  withered 
members  of  the  Christian  body,  drones  in 
the  hive.  The  minister  and  a  few  earnest, 
consecrated  men  and  women  are  left  to  do 
the  whole  work,  while  perhaps  two-thirds 
of  the  members  are  fast  asleep.     Now  all 


138        OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


this  must  come  to  an  end  if  there  is  to  be 
a  revival  in  the  congregation.  The  whole 
Church  must  be  organized  for  work,  and  all 
must  feel  that  they  are  equally  called  to  work 
as  they  have  opportunity.  When  our  Saviour 
fed  the  hungry  multitude  he  gave  to  the 
disciples,  and  the  disciples  to  the  multitude. 
So,  in  order  to  reach  a  dying  world  in  their 
various  conditions  and  necess'  'es,  we  need  to 
organize  and  distribute  by  making  every  mem- 
ber of  the  Church  a  disciple  indeed ;  and  as 
they  go  forth  with  the  Bread  of  Life,  he  will 
bless  the  labor  and  work  to  the  famishing 
thousands  around.  What  we  want  is  not 
an  occasional  spasmodic  effort,  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  folding  of  hands  and  a  going 
to  sleep.  The  whole  Church  must  be  en- 
gaged in  a  persistent  attack  on  the  devil, 
the  world  and  the  flesh.  We  want  special 
efforts  by  all  means,  but  after  these — what  ? 
Do  we  not  need  to  be  as  earnest  and  diligent 
as  ever  in  watering  the  good  seed  sown,  in 
building  up  and  strengthening  the  tender  vines 


SHALL  WE  HAVE  A   REVIVAL?      139 


! 


which  have  been  transplanted  from  the  wil- 
derness, in  encouraging  the  zealous  disciples 
who  have  become  fellow-helpers  to  the  truth, 
and  in  watching,  working  and  praying  with 
Jesus  ? 

Look  at  the  early  days  of  Christianity. 
Those  were  the  days  of  earnest,  persistent  per- 
sonal service.  As  soon  as  a  man  was  convert- 
ed to  God  in  those  days  be  became  a  worker 
for  Christ.  Every  Christian,  whether  he 
moved  in  Caesar's  household  or,  like  Lydia, 
in  the  pursuit  of  humble  commerce, — every 
Christian  did  something  for  Christ  and  sought 
to  advance  his  cause.  And  what  was  the  re- 
sult? Why,  within  three  centuries  after  the 
death  of  Christ  the  cross  was  uplifted  in 
every  land ;  the  name  of  Jesus  was  pro- 
nounced in  every  known  dialect;  mission- 
aries passed  through  the  desert,  penetrated 
into  the  remote  recesses  of  uncivilized  coun- 
tries, and  the  whole  known  world  was  evan- 
gelized. They  were  all  at  it,  and  always  at 
it,  and  the  Lord  blessed  their  labors.     So, 


140        OUTPOURINGS  OP  THE  SPIRIT. 


ye  soldiers  of  the  cross  to-day !  if  you  are  to 
obtain  glorious  victories  you  must  not  rest 
satisfied  with  one  man  in  a  hundred  going  to 
battle.  Every  man  of  you  must  fight  the 
good  fight  of  faith,  every  heart  must  be  stout 
and  every  arm  must  be  strong ;  every  follower 
of  Christ  must  march  forward  with  the  cour- 
age of  a  hero  and  with  the  strength  of  God,  to 
do  battle  against  the  common  enemy  of  man- 
kind. Thus,  and  thus  only,  will  a  true,  real 
and  permanent  revival  of  religion  be  experi- 
enced, will  sinners  be  seen  flocking  to  Jesus 
as  doves  to  their  windows,  and  will  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  cover  the  whole  earth. 

And,  lastly,  let  us  never  forget  to  give  God 
all  the  glory.  Whatever  instrumentality  he 
may  employ,  the  work  is  all  his.  It  is  only 
where  the  Sun  of  mercy  shines  that  the  fruits 
of  grace  will  grow.  Without  the  Spirit  of 
God  the  best  arrai'  7;ed  means  are  useless — 
lamps  wiiuout  oil,  sails  without  wind,  coals 
without  fire.  Underrate  this  truth,  and  you 
cut  yourself  off  from  the  very  fountain-head 


SHALL  WE  HAVE  A   REVIVAL?       141 

of  revival.  We  may  plant  and  water,  but 
spiritual  increase  is  from  God,  and  God 
alone.  It  is  not  of  him  that  wiHeth,  nor  of 
him  that  runneth,  but  of  God  that  showeth 
mercy.  Nothing  short  of  God's  omnipotent 
might  in  Christ's  everlasting  love,  through 
the  Holy  Spirit's  divine  efficacy,  can  revive 
a  single  soul.  Remember  this,  for  it  will 
guide  your  actions,  raise  your  hopes,  strength- 
en your  faith  and  warrant  your  prayers. 

"Revive  thy  work,  O  Lord, 
Thy  mighty  arm  make  bare : 
Speak  with  the  voice  that  wakes  the  dead, 
And  make  thy  people  hear." 


THE   END. 


IHS 


